Relationships between the psychological characteristics of youth with spinal cord injury and their primary caregivers.

STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey.

OBJECTIVES: To describe anxiety and depression among caregivers of youth with spinal cord injury (SCI), examine predictors of caregiver psychological functioning and evaluate relationships between caregiver and child psychological outcomes. The protective factor of youth social relationships was also included to examine its impact on relationships between caregiver and child psychological functioning.

SETTING: Families received services at one of three pediatric specialty hospitals within a single hospital system in the United States.

METHODS: The study included English-speaking youth with SCI, aged between 7 and 17 years, who had been injured at least one year before, and their self-identified primary caregivers. Participants completed surveys assessing their anxiety, depression and youth's perceived social relationships.

RESULTS: The study included 203 youth with an average age of 12.70 years (s.d.=3.15), and among them 70% had paraplegia. Seventy-eight percent of caregivers were mothers, 14% fathers and 8% other family members. In all, 16 and 21% of caregivers scored in the range of moderate/severe anxiety and depression, respectively. Being female and having a child with mental health problems predicted caregiver anxiety and depression. In addition, having a child who was older at the time of injury predicted caregiver depression. Poor social relationships, having a caregiver with mental health problems and having a caregiver with less education predicted both child anxiety and depression.

CONCLUSION: Caregiver sex, child age at injury and child mental health were related to caregiver outcomes; caregiver education, marital status and child age were not. Caregiver mental health and education and child social relationships predicted child outcomes. Neither injury level nor injury severity was related to caregiver or child outcomes.