Social Anxiety, Social Support, and Quality of Life in Patients With Epilepsy at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Saudi Arabia

Faisal I Alkoblan; Musaeb M Alsoadan; Abdulrahman A Alhajri; Mohammed M Almousa; Faisal S Alsalamah; Ambreen Kazi; Fahad A Bashiri; Bandar Aljafen

doi:10.7759/cureus.45447

Social Anxiety, Social Support, and Quality of Life in Patients With Epilepsy at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Saudi Arabia

Cureus. 2023 Sep 18;15(9):e45447. doi: 10.7759/cureus.45447. eCollection 2023 Sep.

Authors

Faisal I Alkoblan¹, Musaeb M Alsoadan¹, Abdulrahman A Alhajri¹, Mohammed M Almousa¹, Faisal S Alsalamah¹, Ambreen Kazi^{2

3}, Fahad A Bashiri⁴, Bandar Aljafen^{5

6}

Affiliations

¹ College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, SAU.
² Princess Nora Bent Abdullah Research Chair for Women's Health Research, Deanship of Scientific Research, King Saud University, Riyadh, SAU.
³ Department of Family and Community Medicine, King Saud University Medical City, Riyadh, SAU.
⁴ Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, King Saud University Medical City, King Saud University, Riyadh, SAU.
⁵ Division of Neurology, College of Medicine, King Saud University Medical City, King Saud University, Riyadh, SAU.
⁶ College of Medicine, Dar Al Uloom University, Riyadh, SAU.

Abstract

Objectives The objectives of this study were to measure the prevalence of social anxiety disorder and its association with quality of life (QoL) in patients with epilepsy (PWE) in King Khalid University Hospital, Riyadh City, Saudi Arabia. Methodology A self-administrated, online, questionnaire-based, cross-sectional study was conducted at King Khalid University Hospital, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on PWE 18 years of age and above from February 2021 to January 2022. Social anxiety and the five domains of QoL were measured using the validated Arabic versions of the Liebowitz social anxiety scale and European quality-of-life 5-dimensions 3-levels (EQ-5D-3L), respectively. Information was collected on sociodemographic characteristics, social support, and adverse life events. Results This study included 246 patients, of which approximately 25% and 15% had mild/moderate and severe/very severe levels of social anxiety, respectively. Severe social anxiety was significantly associated with poor QoL domains, namely, restricted mobility (2.65 [1.00, 6.99]), inability to perform usual activities (3.88 [1.61, 9.36]), pain or discomfort (3.21 [1.38, 7.48]), and anxiety and depression (5.77 [2.45, 13.61]). Similarly, the lack of social support was also significantly associated with poor QoL, such as restricted mobility (2.42 [1.12, 5.22]), restricted self-care (3.64 [1.18, 11.17]), inability to perform usual activities (2.86 [1.42, 5.75]), pain/discomfort (2.53 [1.38, 4.66]), and anxiety and depression (1.93 [1.04, 3.57]). Females showed higher odds for restricted mobility (2.79 [1.29, 6.03]) and low education with limited self-care (7.38 [1.49, 36.71]). Conclusion Patients with epilepsy reported high levels of social anxiety that have a negative effect on their QoL. Healthcare providers should be able to provide counseling to the patient and their family members. In addition, social support is important to improve their mobility and socialization with friends and neighbors.

Keywords: epilepsy; quality of life (qol); saudi arabia; social anxiety; social support.