Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial

Zheng Zhang; Shanshan Wang; Ziwei Liu; Zekai Li

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24

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Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial

Zheng Zhang, Shanshan Wang, Ziwei Liu, Zekai Li

Published in American Journal of Nursing Science (Volume 9, Issue 6)

Received: 6 December 2020 Accepted: 16 December 2020 Published: 22 December 2020

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Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of psychosocial interventions designed to improve the psychological distress of informal caregivers of cancer patients compared with usual care. Methods: Nine relevant databases were searched from inception to November 2020. We included randomized controlled trials focused on comparing psychosocial interventions delivered to informal cancer caregivers with usual care. Study quality was evaluated with the Cochrane Risk of Bias Assessment Tool, and meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager statistical software. Results: Fifteen studies involving 1006 participants met the inclusion criteria, and several kinds of psychosocial interventions were applied to either cancer caregivers or patient-caregiver dyads. Compared to usual care, psychosocial interventions manifested positive, significant results in depression (SMD=-0.47, 95%CI -0.71 to -0.24, P<0.001) and anxiety (SMD=-0.50, 95%CI -0.91 to -0.09, P=0.02). And the psychosocial interventions have no significant effect on general psychological distress (SMD=-0.25, 95%CI -0.54 to 0.05, P=0.10) and subjective burden (SMD=-0.06, 95%CI -0.26 to 0.14, P=0.55) of cancer caregivers. Conclusion: Psychosocial interventions designed for cancer caregivers can effectively reduce depression and anxiety, while no significant results were found in general distress and subjective burden of cancer caregivers. More studies with stronger methodological designs and larger samples are still needed in the future.

Published in	American Journal of Nursing Science (Volume 9, Issue 6)
DOI	10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24
Page(s)	459-465
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Cancer, Caregivers, Psychosocial Intervention, Meta-analysis

References

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APA Style

Zheng Zhang, Shanshan Wang, Ziwei Liu, Zekai Li. (2020). Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial. American Journal of Nursing Science, 9(6), 459-465. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24

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ACS Style

Zheng Zhang; Shanshan Wang; Ziwei Liu; Zekai Li. Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial. Am. J. Nurs. Sci. 2020, 9(6), 459-465. doi: 10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24

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AMA Style

Zheng Zhang, Shanshan Wang, Ziwei Liu, Zekai Li. Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial. Am J Nurs Sci. 2020;9(6):459-465. doi: 10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24

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@article{10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24,
  author = {Zheng Zhang and Shanshan Wang and Ziwei Liu and Zekai Li},
  title = {Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial},
  journal = {American Journal of Nursing Science},
  volume = {9},
  number = {6},
  pages = {459-465},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajns.20200906.24},
  abstract = {Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of psychosocial interventions designed to improve the psychological distress of informal caregivers of cancer patients compared with usual care. Methods: Nine relevant databases were searched from inception to November 2020. We included randomized controlled trials focused on comparing psychosocial interventions delivered to informal cancer caregivers with usual care. Study quality was evaluated with the Cochrane Risk of Bias Assessment Tool, and meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager statistical software. Results: Fifteen studies involving 1006 participants met the inclusion criteria, and several kinds of psychosocial interventions were applied to either cancer caregivers or patient-caregiver dyads. Compared to usual care, psychosocial interventions manifested positive, significant results in depression (SMD=-0.47, 95%CI -0.71 to -0.24, P<0.001) and anxiety (SMD=-0.50, 95%CI -0.91 to -0.09, P=0.02). And the psychosocial interventions have no significant effect on general psychological distress (SMD=-0.25, 95%CI -0.54 to 0.05, P=0.10) and subjective burden (SMD=-0.06, 95%CI -0.26 to 0.14, P=0.55) of cancer caregivers. Conclusion: Psychosocial interventions designed for cancer caregivers can effectively reduce depression and anxiety, while no significant results were found in general distress and subjective burden of cancer caregivers. More studies with stronger methodological designs and larger samples are still needed in the future.},
 year = {2020}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial
AU  - Zheng Zhang
AU  - Shanshan Wang
AU  - Ziwei Liu
AU  - Zekai Li
Y1  - 2020/12/22
PY  - 2020
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24
T2  - American Journal of Nursing Science
JF  - American Journal of Nursing Science
JO  - American Journal of Nursing Science
SP  - 459
EP  - 465
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-5753
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24
AB  - Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of psychosocial interventions designed to improve the psychological distress of informal caregivers of cancer patients compared with usual care. Methods: Nine relevant databases were searched from inception to November 2020. We included randomized controlled trials focused on comparing psychosocial interventions delivered to informal cancer caregivers with usual care. Study quality was evaluated with the Cochrane Risk of Bias Assessment Tool, and meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager statistical software. Results: Fifteen studies involving 1006 participants met the inclusion criteria, and several kinds of psychosocial interventions were applied to either cancer caregivers or patient-caregiver dyads. Compared to usual care, psychosocial interventions manifested positive, significant results in depression (SMD=-0.47, 95%CI -0.71 to -0.24, P<0.001) and anxiety (SMD=-0.50, 95%CI -0.91 to -0.09, P=0.02). And the psychosocial interventions have no significant effect on general psychological distress (SMD=-0.25, 95%CI -0.54 to 0.05, P=0.10) and subjective burden (SMD=-0.06, 95%CI -0.26 to 0.14, P=0.55) of cancer caregivers. Conclusion: Psychosocial interventions designed for cancer caregivers can effectively reduce depression and anxiety, while no significant results were found in general distress and subjective burden of cancer caregivers. More studies with stronger methodological designs and larger samples are still needed in the future.
VL  - 9
IS  - 6
ER  -

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Author Information

Zheng Zhang

School of Nursing, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
Shanshan Wang

School of Nursing, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
Ziwei Liu

School of Nursing, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
Zekai Li

School of Nursing, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China

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APA Style

Zheng Zhang, Shanshan Wang, Ziwei Liu, Zekai Li. (2020). Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial. American Journal of Nursing Science, 9(6), 459-465. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24

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ACS Style

Zheng Zhang; Shanshan Wang; Ziwei Liu; Zekai Li. Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial. Am. J. Nurs. Sci. 2020, 9(6), 459-465. doi: 10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24

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AMA Style

Zheng Zhang, Shanshan Wang, Ziwei Liu, Zekai Li. Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial. Am J Nurs Sci. 2020;9(6):459-465. doi: 10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24

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@article{10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24,
  author = {Zheng Zhang and Shanshan Wang and Ziwei Liu and Zekai Li},
  title = {Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial},
  journal = {American Journal of Nursing Science},
  volume = {9},
  number = {6},
  pages = {459-465},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajns.20200906.24},
  abstract = {Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of psychosocial interventions designed to improve the psychological distress of informal caregivers of cancer patients compared with usual care. Methods: Nine relevant databases were searched from inception to November 2020. We included randomized controlled trials focused on comparing psychosocial interventions delivered to informal cancer caregivers with usual care. Study quality was evaluated with the Cochrane Risk of Bias Assessment Tool, and meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager statistical software. Results: Fifteen studies involving 1006 participants met the inclusion criteria, and several kinds of psychosocial interventions were applied to either cancer caregivers or patient-caregiver dyads. Compared to usual care, psychosocial interventions manifested positive, significant results in depression (SMD=-0.47, 95%CI -0.71 to -0.24, P<0.001) and anxiety (SMD=-0.50, 95%CI -0.91 to -0.09, P=0.02). And the psychosocial interventions have no significant effect on general psychological distress (SMD=-0.25, 95%CI -0.54 to 0.05, P=0.10) and subjective burden (SMD=-0.06, 95%CI -0.26 to 0.14, P=0.55) of cancer caregivers. Conclusion: Psychosocial interventions designed for cancer caregivers can effectively reduce depression and anxiety, while no significant results were found in general distress and subjective burden of cancer caregivers. More studies with stronger methodological designs and larger samples are still needed in the future.},
 year = {2020}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Psychosocial Interventions to Improve Psychological Distress of Informal Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial
AU  - Zheng Zhang
AU  - Shanshan Wang
AU  - Ziwei Liu
AU  - Zekai Li
Y1  - 2020/12/22
PY  - 2020
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24
T2  - American Journal of Nursing Science
JF  - American Journal of Nursing Science
JO  - American Journal of Nursing Science
SP  - 459
EP  - 465
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-5753
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajns.20200906.24
AB  - Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of psychosocial interventions designed to improve the psychological distress of informal caregivers of cancer patients compared with usual care. Methods: Nine relevant databases were searched from inception to November 2020. We included randomized controlled trials focused on comparing psychosocial interventions delivered to informal cancer caregivers with usual care. Study quality was evaluated with the Cochrane Risk of Bias Assessment Tool, and meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager statistical software. Results: Fifteen studies involving 1006 participants met the inclusion criteria, and several kinds of psychosocial interventions were applied to either cancer caregivers or patient-caregiver dyads. Compared to usual care, psychosocial interventions manifested positive, significant results in depression (SMD=-0.47, 95%CI -0.71 to -0.24, P<0.001) and anxiety (SMD=-0.50, 95%CI -0.91 to -0.09, P=0.02). And the psychosocial interventions have no significant effect on general psychological distress (SMD=-0.25, 95%CI -0.54 to 0.05, P=0.10) and subjective burden (SMD=-0.06, 95%CI -0.26 to 0.14, P=0.55) of cancer caregivers. Conclusion: Psychosocial interventions designed for cancer caregivers can effectively reduce depression and anxiety, while no significant results were found in general distress and subjective burden of cancer caregivers. More studies with stronger methodological designs and larger samples are still needed in the future.
VL  - 9
IS  - 6
ER  -

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