{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,1]],"date-time":"2026-04-01T10:48:57Z","timestamp":1775040537748,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":48,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,27]],"date-time":"2026-03-27T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1774569600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nursing Reports"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) requires sustained self-care, yet patients\u2019 ability to manage daily treatment and symptoms is often shaped by the support provided by informal caregivers. Methods: Guided by the Middle-Range Theory of Self-Care of Chronic Illness, this multicentre cross-sectional study described caregivers\u2019 contributions to self-care maintenance, monitoring, and management in IBD, and compared these contributions between caregivers of patients with Crohn\u2019s disease (CD) and those of patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). Results: A convenience sample of 275 caregivers of adult outpatients with IBD was recruited across multiple Italian centres. Caregiver contribution was measured using the Caregiver Contribution to Self-Care of Chronic Illness Inventory, together with caregiver self-efficacy and selected sociodemographic and clinical variables. Caregivers reported substantial involvement across all self-care domains, with significantly higher contributions to self-care maintenance among caregivers of patients with CD than among those caring for patients with UC. Monitoring and management scores were similar across groups. Regression analyses indicated disease-specific patterns, with caregiver gender, education, employment status, and patient clinical characteristics showing differential associations with self-care domains. Conclusions: These findings underscore the central role of caregivers in supporting self-care in IBD and suggest that structured, caregiver-focused approaches embedded in routine clinical pathways may strengthen dyadic chronic illness management.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nursrep16040110","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,27]],"date-time":"2026-03-27T14:33:33Z","timestamp":1774622013000},"page":"110","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Caregiver Contribution to Self-Care in Adults with Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Cross-Sectional Multicenter Study"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2481-5354","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Daniele","family":"Napolitano","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"SITRA and Scientific Direction-Fondazione Policlinico Gemelli IRCCS, 00168 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5581-4114","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alessio","family":"Lo Cascio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Direction of Health Professions, La Maddalena Cancer Center, 90146 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1644-2108","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mattia","family":"Bozzetti","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Direction of Health Professions, ASST Cremona, 26100 Cremona, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-2311-4717","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Fabrizio","family":"Benedetti","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Giulia","family":"Petruccini","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Francesco","family":"Petrosino","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Direction of Health Professions, ASL Salerno, 84124 Salerno, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Silvia","family":"Cilluffo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences for Health, University of Milan, 20121 Milan, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0608-966X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Francesca","family":"Trotta","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"AOU Sant\u2019Andrea Hospital, 00189 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6494-1190","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Davide","family":"Bartoli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Interdisciplinary Department of Wellbeing, Health and Environmental Sustainability-BeSSA Department, Sapienza University of Rome, 02100 Rieti, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4673-7473","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ercole","family":"Vellone","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy"},{"name":"Department of Nursing and Obstetrics, Wroclaw Medical University, 50-367 Wroc\u0142aw, Poland"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6915-6802","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Gianluca","family":"Pucciarelli","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedicine and Prevention, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,27]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"s1","DOI":"10.1136\/gutjnl-2019-318484","article-title":"British Society of Gastroenterology consensus guidelines on the management of inflammatory bowel disease in adults","volume":"68","author":"Lamb","year":"2019","journal-title":"Gut"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"56","DOI":"10.1038\/s41575-020-00360-x","article-title":"The four epidemiological stages in the global evolution of inflammatory bowel disease","volume":"18","author":"Kaplan","year":"2021","journal-title":"Nat. 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