Abstract:  
The present study aims to examine the nature of the burden of frail elders family caregivers as well as its association with these caregivers mental health. The data was derived from the project “The wellbeing and needs of the family caregivers for the frail and very elderly in Shanghai”. Multiple regression is conducted to examine the association between the burden of family caregivers and their depressive symptoms. The results show that the family caregivers mainly reported their burdens in terms of time dependence burden and physical burden. Furthermore, the burden was found to be significantly associated with the depressive symptoms.  

Key words: frail elder, family caregiver, burden, mental health