3 months after discharge from the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and determine the impact of different components of PICS-P upon caregiver burden.
Design: A prospective observational study was conducted over 26 months (January 2013---February 2015).
Setting: Medical-surgical ICU and follow-up consultation in Portugal.
Patients or participants: Patients discharged after a minimum of 2 days in the ICU. Caregiver inclusion criteria: not paid, written and spoken Portuguese, and agreement to participate in the study.
Main variables of interest: In ICU: Patient gender, age, severity of illness (SAPS II) and length of ICU stay. At 3 months caregiver burden, physical (reduced mobility, weakness acquired in the ICU) and psychological components of PICS (anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder).
Results: A total of 168 caregivers completed the survey (response rate of 69%). A low degree of overburden was reported by 34.5% of caregivers, while 15.5% showed moderate to high levels of overburden.
Patient anxiety and depression 3 months after ICU discharge significantly influenced the presence of caregiver burden (p = 0.030 vs p = 0.008).
When physical components of PICS-P were evaluated, no influence on caregiver burden was observed. Patient demographics, severity of illness and length of stay also failed to influence caregiver burden.
Conclusions: The presence of psychological components of PICS-P 3 months after ICU seems to have a negative impact upon caregiver burden. On the other hand, physical problems showed no important impact upon caregiver overburden.