OBJECTIVES: to evaluate factors that influence the caregiver burden of children with cerebral palsy. METHODS: 56 caregivers who worked with children with cerebral palsy aged between one and fifteen years old were evaluated. To evaluate the caregiver burden the Burden Interview scale was used, along with data on the social and economic circumstances of the children's families, the severity of motor impairment, topographic diagnosis and age of child. The Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis test were used for data analysis. RESULTS: poorer social and economic circumstances of the children's families (p=0.03) and a lower severity of motor impairment (p=0.05) in the child with cerebral palsy were associated to a heavier caregiver burden. There was no significant difference in the case of topographic diagnosis (p=0.71) and age of child with cerebral palsy (p=0.35). CONCLUSIONS: understanding the factors that influence the caregiver burden is one further factor that can assist care planning and intervention for this specific group.
Cerebral palsy; Quality of life; Child
