Depression and burden among caregivers of children with autistic spectrum disorder.

OBJECTIVE: To study depression prevalence and burden among caregivers of children with autistic spectrum disorder and the related factors.

MATERIAL AND METHOD: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study. Measures included questionnaires, CES-D and burden interview. Patients' diagnoses andfunctions were obtainedfrom childpsychiatrists and developmental pediatricians responsible for the patients.

RESULTS: There were 51 participants. The depression prevalence was 5.9%. Concerning the burden, 45.1% ofthe participants reported little or no burden, and 45.1% reported mild to moderate burden. Only 7.8% and 2.0% experienced moderate to severe and severe burdens, respectively. There was a significant positive correlation between depression and burden (p = 0.012). Significant correlations were also observed between burden and months after diagnosed, the number ofpatient' problems and the number of hours that caregiver spent with patient per day. Moreover the burden was significantly associated with patient's communication problems and patient's inappropriate odd repetitive behaviors (p<0. 05).

CONCLUSION: The prevalence of depression in and severe burden on caregivers of autistic childrenfrom the present study was low. Factors related to the burden were months after diagnosed, the number of patient's problems, the number of hours that caregiver spent with patient, patient's communication problems and inappropriate or odd repetitive behaviors.