Symptom dimensions, social network, and caregiver burden in chronic schizophrenia

Five symptom domains of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), functional capacity (GAF), three subscales of the extent of social network, and three subscales of caregiver burden section of the Involvement Evaluation Questionaire (SIEQ) were measured in a cross-sectional sample of 51 chronic schizophrenic outpatients. The excitement domain of the PANSS correlated significantly with poor relationship with the patient (r = 0.33, P < 0.05) and worries about him/her (r = 0.28, P < 0.05), and the depression/anxiety domain correlated significantly with worries about the patient (r = 0.30, P < 0.05). In a stepwise Linear regression model, strained and poor atmosphere between the patient and the caregiver was significantly associated with a high excitement component score of the PANSS (P = 0.017). There was no association between the extent of a patient's social network and caregiver burden. The authors suggest that, in chronic schizophrenia, treatment of particular symptom dimensions may be more effective in relieving caregiver burden than interventions directed towards extending the patient's social network.