SynthesisGesundheitswesen (Bundesverband der Arzte des Offentlichen Gesundheitsdienstes (Germany))2025
[How effective are non-pharmacological interventions for family caregivers? A systematic review with meta-analyses].
Synthesis in Gesundheitswesen (Bundesverband der Arzte des Offentlichen Gesundheitsdienstes (Germany)), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
What it found
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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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Development of and satisfaction with a short-term outpatient preventive medical service for working informal caregivers: a study protocol of a non-randomized prospective pilot study.Pilot and feasibility studies · 2026Article
- Evaluating the Applicability of the Self-Assessment Tool for Family Caregivers (SSA-PA) in Care Counseling According to Section 45 of the German Social Code (SGB XI): A Mixed-Methods Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- [Assessing the health of working informal caregivers : Analysis of an employment survey using propensity score matching].Zeitschrift fur Gerontologie und Geriatrie · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionInformal caregiving is associated with mental disorders and reduced quality of life. The aim of this systematic review was to summarize the results of methodologically high-quality intervention studies on the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions on patient-relevant outcomes for family caregivers in Germany.
methodWe searched three large scientific literature databases for intervention studies with a control group and a low or moderate risk of bias on the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions for family caregivers in Germany.
resultAmong 4,376 publications reviewed, 10 intervention studies with good methodological quality were identified. These investigated multi-component interventions or cognitive behavioral therapy for family caregivers of people with dementia (8 studies), stroke (1 study) and with general care dependency (1 study). The control groups received information material as a minimal intervention or usual standard care. Meta-analyses showed a statistically significant slight reduction in depressive symptoms 3-6 months after the start of the study as a result of cognitive behavioral therapy (standardized mean difference -0.27; 95% confidence interval -0.44 - -0.10), but this no longer reached statistical significance after 9-12 months (-0.21; -0.51 - 0.09). Multi-component interventions showed no changes in depressive symptoms either after 3-6 or after 9-12 months (-0.18; -0.40 - 0.03 and -0.14; -0.47 - 0.14, respectively). In contrast, the mental component of quality of life of family caregivers improved statistically significantly in the multi-component intervention groups compared to the control groups: slightly after 3-6 months (0.28; 0.01 - 0.56) and moderately after 9-12 months (0.45; 0.09 - 0.82). The interventions had no effect on the physical component of quality of life.
conclusionThe reduction of depressive symptoms by behavioral therapy interventions for family caregivers appears to be only slight and not sustainable. The mental component of quality of life of people affected may be improved in the longer term by multi-component interventions. Current scientifically examined interventions for informal caregivers do not appear to have a sufficient and sustainable effect. Greater effects could possibly be achieved through more elaborate behavioral approaches, but also structural preventive measures.
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