Cortisol Outcomes among Caucasian and Latina/Hispanic Women Caring for a Family Member with Dementia: A Preliminary Examination of Psychosocial Predictors and Effects of a Psychoeducational Intervention

A host of interventions are now known to be helpful to alleviate subjective distress and improve well-being in dementia caregivers. However, few intervention studies have focused on measures of physical health, and none have examined cortisol as an outcome-despite the fact that cortisol is regarded as a crucial biological intermediary by which chronic stress leads to disease. In this study, we examined demographic and psychosocial factors as predictors of salivary cortisol at a baseline assessment, among a sample of 175 Latino/Hispanic and Caucasian women caring for a family member with dementia. We also examined the influence of a cognitive-behaviour-based psychoeducational intervention (Coping with Caregiving) on cortisol at a post-treatment assessment, compared with a minimal support condition. Results revealed that caregivers with high intensity caregiving situations, characterized by long hours of care and co-residence with the care recipient, tended to have less adaptive cortisol patterns. However, these 'at-risk' caregivers benefited most from the Coping with Caregiving intervention and had more normal cortisol patterns at post-treatment, compared with caregivers in the control condition. Copyright (C) 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.