Burden of care and quality of life in caregivers of children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder

Background: Autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder which is increasing across the globe. The disorder in children not only creates burden of care in caregivers but also leads to impaired quality of life of families. Objective: To study the burden of care and quality of life in caregivers of children and adolescents with ASD. Methodology: Cross sectional study conducted in Child and Adolescent psychiatry outpatient services at a government centre in north India between September 2014 to August 2015. The sample consisted of 40 caregivers of children with Autism. Mean age of the caregiver's were 34.72 +/- 6.32 years. Burden of care and quality of life were measured by Burden Assessment Schedule (BAS) and World Health Organization Quality of Life Instrument, Short Form (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire respectively. Results: Mean burden of care on BAS was 71.73 +/- 8.62 indicating quite a high degree of burden on the caregivers of ASD. Significantly higher burden was reported by caregivers belonging to low income families and caregivers of children in age group 6-12 years. A positive correlation was observed between severity of autism and burden of care in caregivers. The study also found that as the severity of symptom increases the QoL in caregiver worsens. Conclusion: Caregivers of children with ASD suffer from high burden of care and impaired QoL.