Abstracts

Rationale: Quality of life is an essential element of pharmaceutical trials and medical treatment that refocuses medical intervention on the issues relevant to patients and their perspectives, but is rarely incorporated into routine clinical care practice. The purpose of this study was to determine the level of quality of life (QOL), depression, anxiety and multidimensional scale of perceived social support (MSPSS) of patients with epilepsy and the effects of sociodemographic variables and clinical features of the disease on these parameters. Methods: We identified 139 epilepsy patients and an interview was performed by a neurologist with the use of a standardized questionnaire, which included data pertaining to seizure characteristics. The SF-36 health survey, Beck depression, Beck anxiety and MSPSS tests were administered to patients and 143 healthy control subjects. Results: In epilepsy group, depression and anxiety scores were higher, friend scores in (MSPSS) were lower and all scores except “pain” in SF-36 test were lower than controls (p<0.001 ve p<0.05). We found that gender, marriage, education, employment status, economic status, seizure frequency, seizure type, seizure time and the number of antiepileptic drugs affected one or more subscales of the tests. Multi antiepileptic drugs and frequent seizures (> 1 per month) were the most important factors in explaining lower QOL. Role limitations because of physical health problems and mental health were the most effected subscales of QOL. Having complex partial secondary generalized seizure is the most associated seizure type with lower QOL, depression and anxiety. Conclusions: To assess quality of life in epilepsy patients will provide both understanding of the disease and therapy response. Although many factors were affecting the life quality of epilepsy patients, successful treatment with less drug and seizure control may help to provide better life to the patients.