Abstracts

Rationale: As with any chronic disorder, people with epilepsy (PWE) experience various health outcomes. These outcomes are dependent on many clinical factors which can differ significantly between individuals. Management of epilepsy thus involves many elements, and includes addressing self management behaviors. Understanding individuals self management strategies is imperative for treating clinicians, as this may lead to strategizing potential patient-centered goals in an effort to improve outcomes.Methods: Over a 3-months period, consecutive adult PWE receiving care in an outpatient setting at a regional epilepsy center (Winthrop Comprehensive Epilepsy Center in Mineola, NY) were administered the Epilepsy Self Management Scale (ESMS), a 38-item validated instrument used to assess epilepsy self-management practices. Clinical and demographic data were collected and ESMS scores and subscores were compared between patients with recurrent seizures and those with well-controlled epilepsy (those seizure-free for over 12 months).Results: Our sample consisted of 32 PWE (mean age 33; 18 men); 16 were with recurrent seizures and 16 well controlled. Mean scores on the ESMS subscales were 2.71 (information management), 3.00 (lifestyle management), 3.8 (medication management), 3.13 (safety management), and 4.50 (seizure management). PWE with recurrent seizures had lower subscales in information management (2.34 vs. 2.90; p < 0.05), lifestyle management (2.97 vs. 3.63; p <0.03), and seizure management (3.94 vs. 4.42; p <0.005) compared to those who were well controlled. Conclusions: In our preliminary investigation, significant differences existed among ESMS domains between PWE with recurrent seizures and those well controlled. Identifying weaknesses in self management behaviors could perhaps lead to directed counseling in an effort to optimize clinical outcomes. Further long term study is warranted to assess for specific clinical factors that may lead to self management issues, which could allow for targeted interventions.