Authors: Naiza Monono, Pokam Benjamin, Tamko Djuidja, Nkouonlack Cyrille, Assob Nguedia.
Background: Sickle cell disease is a very common inherited blood disorder. It is characterized by several chronic manifestations, which becomes burdensome for the patients, and the caregivers (parents). Identifying and understanding the factors associated with burden among caregivers of children with sickle cell disease will allow us to improve their quality of life and in turn, the care given to the sick children. Thus, this study aimed at evaluating the level of burden among caregivers of children with sickle cell disease and determining the factors influencing this state.
Methods: A hospital based cross-sectional analytic study was carried out from March 2022- April 2022 at the ‘Centre Mere et Enfant’ (CME) of the ‘Foundation Chantal Biya’(FCB) in Yaounde. Data was collected using the Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI). Data were entered and analyzed using Epi Info version 7.2.2.6 Statistical significance was set at p-value <0.05 while bivariate and multivariate analysis was used to test for associations.
Results: One hundred and seventy-four caregivers (174) were included in the study among which more than half (77.6%) were females. Almost half (49.4%) respondents perceived moderate to severe burden with Mean score of level of burden being 42.8. Significant statistical associations were found between moderate to severe caregiver burden and job loss (p= 0.01; OR=1.09-7.34) and social stigmatization (p=0.0003; OR=1.45-5.51).
Conclusions: The study revealed that majority of the caregivers perceived a moderate to severe burden and that this level of burden was associated with social stigmatization and job loss.