The effects of progressive muscle relaxation exercise on dementia caregivers

BAYKAL D., BİLGİÇ B.

Geriatric Nursing, cilt.59, ss.491-497, 2024 (SCI-Expanded) identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 59
  • Basım Tarihi: 2024
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1016/j.gerinurse.2024.07.035
  • Dergi Adı: Geriatric Nursing
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, ASSIA, Abstracts in Social Gerontology, AgeLine, CINAHL, EMBASE
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.491-497
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: Anxiety, Caregiver burden, Dementia, Depression, Progressive muscle relaxation, Stress
  • İstanbul Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

While progressive muscle relaxation has demonstrated effectiveness in reducing anxiety, stress, and depression in general populations, its impact on caregivers of dementia patients remains understudied. This study investigated the effectiveness of Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) in improving the well-being of dementia caregivers. Caregivers of individuals with dementia (n = 57) participated in a 3-month intervention, engaging in PMR thrice weekly. Participants completed assessments of depression, anxiety, stress, and caregiver burden at pre-test and post-intervention period. The intervention led to significant reductions in anxiety, stress, depression, and caregiver burden among participants. Female caregivers reported to have higher levels of anxiety and stress compared to males. Caregivers under financial stress showed high levels of distress and increased caregiver burden. These promising findings suggest the need for further research with larger, multicenter samples. Notably, PMR is a readily implementable intervention by nurses, requiring minimal equipment and offering a cost-effective approach to supporting caregiver well-being.