Factors contributing to concerns of persons living with epilepsy

Abstract

Purpose: To describe the concerns of Korean adults living with epilepsy and to compare the concerns of individuals with controlled and uncontrolled seizures.

Methods: Outpatients filled out questionnaires, including the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Quality of Life in Epilepsy-10 questionnaire, the stigma scale, and a questionnaire on episodes of discrimination. Patients were asked to fill out the Epilepsy Foundation of America (EFA) Concerns Index and to list their concerns on a blank sheet of paper.

Results: Of the 178 participants, 152 described a total of 470 concerns, which could be assorted into 25 distinct concerns. Worrying about the hereditability of their condition was the only concern that differed significantly between individuals with controlled and uncontrolled seizures. Three significant factors were identified on the total EFA Concerns Index score: level of anxiety/depression (34.4%), age (6.3%), and degree of social discrimination (4.3%), resulting in a total explained variance of 45.0%.

Conclusions: Korean adults with epilepsy had various concerns, with some differing from those in Western populations. Anxiety/depression, age and degree of discrimination were significantly associated with the degree of concern in Korean patients with epilepsy.