ArticleEClinicalMedicine2023
Psychological, behavioural, and physical aspects of caregiver strain in autism-caregivers: a cohort study.
Article in EClinicalMedicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 25 citations in OpenAlex.
- Food Insecurity in Families With Children or Young People With Autism: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Nutrition bulletin · 2026Pooled it
- Caregiver Strain and Quality of Life in Parents of Offspring With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: Moderating Effects of Caregiver Age and Mutuality.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2026Article
- Psychological Distress in Family Members of Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder-Associated Factors and Implications for Healthcare.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Caregiver's burden and their relationship to physical activity, exercise self-efficacy, perceived exercise benefits and barriers in caregivers of children with autism spectrum disorder.BMC primary care · 2026Article
- Chronic Parenting Stress in Parents of Children with Autism: Associations with Chronic Stress in Their Child and Parental Mental and Physical Health.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2026Article
- Mealtime behaviours, diet quality and parental stress in children with autism spectrum disorder: a cross-sectional study from Türkiye.BMJ paediatrics open · 2026Article
- The pathway of early detection, diagnosis, and intervention for autistic children: a multi-center mixed method study.Pediatric research · 2026Article
- Capability well-being in mothers and fathers of autistic children: a cross-sectional study from China.BMC psychology · 2025Article
- Quality of life in caregivers of toddlers with autism features.Research in developmental disabilities · 2025Article
- The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Relationship between family functioning and affiliate stigma in parents of children with autism spectrum disorder in China: the mediating role of positive aspects of caregiving.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Association between adherence to behavioral intervention and capability well-being among parents of autistic children: a cross-sectional study from China.BMC psychiatry · 2024Article
- The effects of service dogs for children with autism spectrum disorder and their caregivers: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
9 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: People who give care to autistic individuals (autism-caregivers) experience higher levels of caregiver strain than people who provide care for individuals with other chronic conditions (non-autism-caregivers). This places them at higher risk for psychological, behavioural and physical health concerns. The aim of this study is to delineate psychological, behavioural, and physical aspects of caregiver strain in autism-caregivers compared to non-autism-caregivers. Methods: We included 3354 adult caregivers from the general population in the Netherlands participating in the second assessment (January, 1, 2014-December, 31, 2017) of the Lifelines Cohort. In this cohort study, using multivariable regression adjusted for age, sex, and socioeconomic status, we analysed psychological (anxiety and depression based on a Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview, and self-reported stress and perceived health), behavioural (questionnaire-assessed physical activity, alcohol use, and smoking), and physical aspects (body mass index, waist circumference, and leukocyte-counts) of caregiver strain in autism-caregivers (n = 722) compared with non-autism-caregivers (n = 2632). Findings: Autism-caregivers reported more stress (OR 3.61, 95% CI 2.60-4.99). Both anxiety (OR 1.85, 95% CI 1.37-2.49) and depressive disorders (OR 1.83, 95% CI 1.17-2.86) were more common in autism-caregivers than in non-autism-caregivers. Perceived health, physical activity, alcohol use, and smoking were not different between autism- and non-autism-caregivers. In autism-caregivers, lymphocyte- and monocyte-counts were lower than in non-autism-caregivers. Interpretation: In this large cohort, autism-caregivers had worse psychological health than non-autism-caregivers. Moreover, autism-caregiving might be associated with an altered immune balance. These findings underline the higher caregiver strain in autism-caregivers compared to other caregivers. This calls for increased support to autism-caregivers. Funding: Lifelines has been funded by the Dutch government.
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