Evaluating the Care Burden of Caregivers of Patients With Brain Injury and Determining the Influencing Factors

The FIM measures functional independence with 18 items that assess Self-care (six items), Mobility (seven items), and Cognition (five items). Items are scored 1 through 7 with a score of 1 representing complete dependence and a score of 7 indicating complete independence. The items are summed to obtain a total score ranging from 18 to 126.

CSI is a 13-item, self-administered objective questionnaire designed to assess level of stress experienced by the informal caregivers. Participants had to answer all the items as either YES or NO. The scoring was one (1) point for each answer of 'YES' and zero (0) for each answer of 'NO'. The question scores were summed with the maximum score of 13. This score was then divided into 'having strain' (score of ≥7) and 'no strain' (score of <7).

The SWLS (Satisfaction With Life Scale) provides a global measure of satisfaction with life as an overall summation of a person. It consists of five questions rated on a 7-point Likert scale, from 'strongly agree' (response option 7) to 'strongly disagree' (response option 1). In agreement with previous studies the scores are summed to a total score ranging from 5 to 35. A score of 20 represents the midpoint between satisfied and dissatisfied with life.

The Disability Rating Scale consists of eight items, each of which is rated on a scale of 0 to either 3 or 5.

The Neurobehavioral Rating Scale-revised (NBRS-R) is a widely-used measurement around the world, which focus specifically on brain injury patients. It appears to be a more sensitive tool for monitoring neurobehavioral disturbances. The NBRS-R consists of 29 items with a four-level response (absent, mild, moderate, severe).

Rancho Los Amigos Cognitive Scale-Revised (RLAS-R) was used to categorise level of cognitive and behavioral function. RLAS-R levels were dichotomised into 'inferior functioning' (RLAS-R 1-8) and 'superior functioning' (RLAS-R 9-10).

The Functional Ambulation Classification Scale (FACS) classifies patients according to basic motor skills necessary for functional ambulation and ranges from independent walking outside (Category 5) to non-functional walking (Category 0)

Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale is a scale which is a 14-item questionnaire. Seven items evaluate depression and the other seven items evaluate anxiety. Subscale total scores above 7 indicate an anxiety disorder or depression, respectively.

The PSQI has 19 items assessing subjectively perceived sleep quality in the previous month. Global scores combine subdomains of sleep duration, sleep disturbance, sleep latency, sleep efficiency, daytime dysfunction, overall sleep quality and medication use. The score range is 0-21, with higher values indicating poorer sleep quality.

The NHP is divided into two parts: part 1 comprises 38 statements divided into six domains (energy, pain, emotional reactions, sleep, social isolation, and physical mobility). Part 2 of the NHP, lists six important activities of daily living that are affected negatively if the patient has a poor state of health.