Online Education and Cognitive Behavior Therapy Improve Dementia Caregivers' Mental Health: A Randomized Trial

Objectives To compare online cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) with and without telephone support respectively to psychoeducation in a randomized controlled trial (RCT) caregivers of people dementia mild anxiety or depression. Design Three-arm parallel-group RCT comparing CBT psychoeducation. Setting Participants Online study dementia. Measures The primary outcome measure was mental health measured by General Health Questionnaire–12 (GHQ-12) at 26 weeks. Secondary outcomes included the Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS); Relative Stress (RSS) Short Sense Competency Questionnaire. analysis focused on completing GHQ-12 both baseline weeks, evaluated using covariance. Results 638 were 3 treatment arms, whom 208 population. There significant improvements all arms compared (P < .001 for interventions), but neither nor conferred any advantage For secondary outcomes, there no differences between psychoeducation, less effective than respect HADS depression subscale [mean difference 1.86, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.61, 3.11; P = .004] caregiver stress (RSS mean 3.11, CI 0.13, 6.09; .04). Good safety achieved deaths serious adverse events. Conclusions Implications benefits over weeks mood, advantages intervention. mood should not be recommended based current evidence.