Skip to content
Research Article Open access CC BY 4.0

Quality of Life in Caregivers of Children with Cerebral Palsy in Rivers State, Nigeria

Gabriel-Job N, Wobo KN, Frank-Briggs A.I

International Neuropsychiatric Disease Journal · pp. 14–23 · Published 29 Feb 2024

10.9734/indj/2024/v21i2423

Abstract

Introduction: Cerebral palsy (CP) is a common neurologic disorder which leads to physical disability in children. Children with CP require more care and attention from their care givers. Hence the quality of life (QoL) of the care givers can be adversely affected. Aim: The aim of this study is to assess the QoL and its determinants among caregivers of children with CP in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: Using a convenience sampling method, a hospital based cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out, participants were 96 caregivers of children on follow up for CP. The English Version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life-Bref (WHOQOL-Bref) was used to evaluate the QoL of the participants. A structured questionnaire was used to obtain socio- demographic characteristic of the participants and children with CP, while the patients hospital record was used to obtain the medical history of the patients. The functional disability level of the child was measured by the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS levels I-V) scale. Multiple regression analysis was carried out to determine the predictors of the care givers QoL on all four domains of the WHOQOL-Bref. Results: The ages of the participants ranged from 23 -58 years with a mean age of 37.67± 8.27 years. Seventy-eight (81.3%) were females, 77(80.0%) had secondary education and above while 56 (58.3%) of the patients had co-morbidity. The care givers had lower level of QoL < 60 points in all domains except for Physical Health Domain which had mean point of 61.3. The GMFCS level of the patients with CP and the marital status of the caregivers significantly determined the different domains of the caregivers QoL (p ≤ 0.05). Age of care giver (p 0.00), presence of comorbidity (0.03) significantly predicted the psychological domain of the QoL of the care givers. In addition, the socioeconomic class significantly predicted the environment and psychological domains of the caregivers QoL (p < 0.05). Conclusion: The quality of life in caregivers of children with cerebral palsy is low. The predictors include GMFCS level of the patient, age of the care giver, marital status, presence of comorbidity and socioeconomic status. The treatment of CP should include strategies to enhance the health and quality of life of caregivers of children with the condition.

Quality of life caregiver cerebral palsy Port Harcourt

References (28)

  1. 1 Development of the World Health Organization WHOQOL-BREF Quality of Life Assessment [DOI]
  2. 2 A report: the definition and classification of cerebral palsy April 2006 [DOI]
  3. 3 Depression in mothers and fathers of children with intellectual disability [DOI]
  4. 4 The impact of caring for a child with cerebral palsy: quality of life for mothers and fathers [DOI]
  5. 5 Cut-off point for WHOQOL-bref as a measure of quality of life of older adults [DOI]
  6. 6 Overview of Four Functional Classification Systems Commonly Used in Cerebral Palsy [DOI]
  7. 7 Socioeconomic Status and Quality of Life: An Assessment of the Mediating Effect of Social Capital [DOI]
  8. 8 Prevalence of depression, anxiety, and substance‐related disorders in parents of children with cerebral palsy: a systematic review [DOI]
  9. 9 Determinants of Health-related Quality of Life Among Mothers of Children With Cerebral Palsy [DOI]
  10. 10 A revised scoring scheme for the classification of socio-economic status in Nigeria [DOI]
  11. 11 Interventions and strategies to improve social support for caregivers of children with chronic diseases: An umbrella review [DOI]
  12. 12 Musculo-skeletal pain, quality of life and depression in mothers of children with cerebral palsy [DOI]
  13. 13 Quality of Life in Mothers of Children with Cerebral Palsy [DOI]
  14. 14 Determinants of Needs of Families of Children and Youth With Cerebral Palsy [DOI]
  15. 15 Factors Associated with Quality of Life in Mothers of Children with Cerebral Palsy in Iran [DOI]
  16. 16 Quality of life of primary caregivers of children living with cerebral palsy at two clinics in Blantyre, Malawi [DOI]
  17. 17 Quality of Life in Parents of Children with Cerebral Palsy: Is it Influenced by the Child's Behaviour? [DOI]
  18. 18 Quality of life of parents of children with cerebral palsy
  19. 19 Association between social capital and quality of life among urban residents in less developed cities of western China [DOI]
  20. 20 Exploring the Relationship between Social Class and Quality of Life: the Mediating Role of Power and Status [DOI]
  21. 21 Depression and Quality Of Life In Mothers Of Children With Cerebral Palsy
  22. 22 Pattern of Paediatric Neurological Disorders in Port Harcourt, Nigeria [DOI]
  23. 23 Quality of life of mothers of children with cerebral palsy and their agematched controls
  24. 24 Description of environmental determinants of quality of life in children with intellectual disability in Japan using the Delphi technique [DOI]
  25. 25 Social capital as a mediator of the influence of socioeconomic position on health: Findings from a population-based cross-sectional study in Chandigarh, India [DOI]
  26. 26 Effect of child's cerebral palsy on the mother: a case control study in Ahvaz, Iran [DOI]
  27. 27 Quality of Life of Children with Cerebral Palsy: Accumulative Effect of Physiotherapy Intervention in North Central and Southwest Nigeria [DOI]
  28. 28 Cerebral Palsy among Children Seen in University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital: Aetiologies and Comorbidities [DOI]

Cited by 0

No indexed citations yet.

Related research

Article metrics

Real usage data collected on this platform.

27

Page views

0

PDF downloads

4

Outbound clicks

0

Citations

Views over time

Views by country

Approximate, from request IP at view time — not citizenship or institution. Countries with fewer than 5 views are grouped as "Other".

Traffic sources

Referring site, by host.

Views and downloads exclude known bots/crawlers. Citations combines this platform's own DOI-resolved index with each external source's own reported total — see Cited by above for individually listed citing works. Last refreshed 0 seconds ago.