Objective To analyze the level of psychological distress and its influencing factors among family caregivers of patients with chronic heart failure.

Methods A total of 205 pairs of chronic heart failure patients and their family caregivers were selected as the study subjects. General information questionnaires, the Distress Thermometer, the Zarit Caregiver Burden Scale, and the Self-Compassion Scale were used for the survey. Pearson correlation analysis was employed to explore the correlations between variables. Multiple stepwise linear regression analysis was conducted to screen the influencing factors of psychological distress among caregivers of chronic heart failure patients.

Results The psychological distress score of caregivers was (7.40±2.34) points, indicating a generally high level. The proportion of caregivers with severe or higher levels of psychological distress was as high as 70.24%. The psychological distress score of patients was (6.58±2.47) points, with 52.20% of them experiencing severe or higher levels of psychological distress. The paired t-test results showed thatthe psychological distress score of caregivers was higher than that of patients, and the difference was statistically significant (t=5.710, P < 0.001). Pearson correlation analysis revealed that the psychological distress score of caregivers was significantly positively correlated with the caregiver burden score and the patient's psychological distress score (r=0.561, 0.631, P < 0.001), and significantly negatively correlated with the caregiver's self-compassion score (r=-0.345, P < 0.001). Multiple stepwise linear regression analysis demonstrated that the patient's psychological distress score, the patient's marital status, the caregiver's health status, the caregiver's self-compassion score, and the caregiver burden score were independent influencing factors of the caregiver's psychological distress (P < 0.05).

Conclusion Both CHF patients and their caregivers experience varying degrees of psychological distress, with caregivers having a relatively high level of psychological distress, which is jointly influenced by multiple factors related to patients and caregivers. Clinical practitioners should pay attention to the mental health of caregivers while focusing on the patient's condition. Comprehensive interventions should be implemented to improve their psychological adaptation levels by reducing the caregiver burden and providing dyadic psychological support for patients and caregivers.