Comparative Japanese-German Study on Self-Stigma in People with Epilepsy
Abstract number :
2.336
Submission category :
11. Behavior/Neuropsychology/Language / 11A. Adult
Year :
2023
Submission ID :
370
Source :
www.aesnet.org
Presentation date :
12/3/2023 12:00:00 AM
Published date :
Authors :
Presenting Author: Izumi Kuramochi, MD, PhD – Saitama Medical Center, Saitama Medical University
Takayuki Iwayama, PhD – Showa Women’s University; Satsuki Watanabe, MD, PhD – Saitama Medical University Hospital; Hiroaki Okajima, MD, PhD – Saitama Medical University Hospital; Koji Matsuo, MD, PhD – Saitama Medical University Hospital; Haruo Yoshimasu, MD, PhD – Saitama Medical Center, Saitama Medical University; Brandt Christian, MD, PhD – Bielefeld University, Medical School, Department of Epileptology (Krankenhaus Mara); G. Bien Christian, MD, PhD – Bielefeld University, Medical School, Department of Epileptology (Krankenhaus Mara); Anne Hagemann, PhD – Society for Epilepsy Research
Rationale: Attitudes, prejudices, and treatment demands towards diseases are influenced by the cultural backgrounds of patients. Research on mental illness has shown that patients from collectivist cultures are more likely to experience self-stigma towards their illness. However, there is no report on comparative studies of epilepsy in multicultural contexts. Understanding these differences can lead to more effective support for patients with diverse cultural backgrounds. Therefore, we conducted a survey to compare self-stigma and knowledge of epilepsy among patients in Japan and Germany.
Methods: People with epilepsy (PWE) in Japan (two facilities in Saitama Prefecture, February to April 2023) and Germany (Bethel Epilepsy Center, May to October 2022) were asked to respond to the following questionnaires after informed consent. We compared the two groups by t-test and correlation analysis: self-stigma (ESSS; Epilepsy Self-stigma Scale), self-esteem (RSES; Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale), depression (NDDI-E; Neurological Disorders Depression Inventory for Epilepsy), anxiety (GAD-7; Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7), knowledge (EKS; Epilepsy Knowledge Scale), quality of life (QOL; a part of the QOLIE-31, 0-10 points), and health awareness (a part of the QOLIE-31, 0-100 points).
Results: Our data from 104 Japanese and 115 Germans were included in the analysis. Japanese PWE had significantly lower scores in QOL (t=-3.26, P< 0.001), health awareness (t=-2.27, P< 0.01), self-esteem (t=-10.84, P< 0.001), knowledge (t=-3.86, P< 0.001), self-stigma (t=-4.74, P< 0.001), and high scores in depression (t=2.71, P< 0.01) than German PWE. The self-stigma of PWE (J: Japanese, G: German) was negative correlations with QOL (J: r=-0.21, P=0.03; G: r=-0.39, P< 0.001) and health (J: r=-0.25, P=0.01; G: r=-0.33, P< 0.001), negative correlations with self-esteem (J: r=-0.41, P< 0.001; G: r=-0.37, P< 0.001) and positive correlations with depression (J: r=-0.49, P< 0.001; G: r=-0.45, P< 0.001) and anxiety (J: r=-0.44, P< 0.001; G: r=-0.53, P< 0.001). However, there was no significant association between self-stigma and knowledge (J: r=0.05, P=0.59; G: r=-0.05, P=0.57).
Behavior