Thank you very much for your interest in our paper (Kawada, Reference Kawada2018). First, the patients in our study were from one single medical center, while Bonanni's study was a nationwide multicenter research project. Therefore, we do not think it is appropriate to compare these two studies directly. Regarding the sample size, each of the three groups were eligible for statistical analysis, and it is of course better to pursue the same issue with bigger sample sizes, especially, for FTD and DLB in future studies.
Second, the progression or severity of the disease probably affects the assessment of caregiver burden in patients with different types of dementia. But our study was a cross-sectional study and aimed to compare the caregiver burden in caregivers of patients with FTD and DLB with caregivers of patients with Alzheimer's disease. In our results, the MMSE and the ADL of patients with both FTD and DLB are comparative with that of patients with AD. Longitudinal follow-up will be helpful to further investigate the role of the progression or severity.
Finally, all of the caregivers in our study were family members since patients are usually taken care of by their family members in China instead of commercial staff, normally the spouse or child. Anyway, we agree that further study with special reference to the type of care should be recommended.
