Abstracts

Mood disorders are a frequent comorbidity in persons with epilepsy. As part of the Epilepsy Foundation[apos]s initiative on mood disorders, a survey was developed to assess knowledge of and attitudes and practices towards mood disorders in epilepsy. After this survey was piloted at the American Epilepsy Society Meeting in 2004, it was thought that information was needed from a more representative sample of US neurologists; therefore the survey was distributed to members of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN)., The survey entitled [quot]Mood in Epilepsy Neurology Practice Questionnaire[rdquo]consists of 14 questions including three demographic items. A 5-degree Likert scale was developed for most answer choices. We used an internet survey provider to send the questions via e-mail to 900 randomly selected AAN members., 156 responses (17%) were obtained and the percentages of the answers to selected questions follow:
1) How often do you ask epilepsy patients about their mood? Never 1/Rarely 7/Sometimes 26/Often 46/Always 20
2) How much do you think that symptoms of a mood disorder are important factors in determining an epilepsy patient[apos]s quality of life? Very little 1/To a mild degree 1/Somewhat 10/Quite a bit 52/A lot 36
3) When you diagnose a mood disorder in an epilepsy patient, how often do you initiate a medication to treat it (medication for depression, anxiety, etc)? Never 6/Rarely 12/Sometimes 38/Often 38/Always 6
4) When you diagnose a mood disorder in an epilepsy patient with a mood disorder, how often do you refer the patient to a psychiatrist for initiation of treatment? Never 3/Rarely 21/Sometimes 44/Often 24/Always 8
5) How frequently do you limit your prescribing of antidepressants because of concern about exacerbating seizures? Always 1/Often 5/Sometimes 30/Rarely 50/Never 14
6) In your practice, how much of an obstacle is the patient[apos]s insurance coverage when referring epilepsy patients with depression for psychiatric treatment?
Overwhelming obstacle 7/Often an obstacle 26/Sometimes an obstacle 31/Usually not an obstacle 13/Rarely an obstacle 13/Don[apos]t know 10
7) Your age in years 25-35=17;35-45=29;45-55=27;55-65=22;65 and older=5
8) Type of Practice
Adult Neurology [ndash]Academic=33
Adult Neurology [ndash] Private=39
Adult Epileptology [ndash]Academic=11
Adult Epileptology [ndash] Private=4
Pediatric Neurology [ndash]Academic=9
Pediatric Neurology [ndash] Private=4
Pediatric Epileptology [ndash]Academic=4
Pediatric Epileptology [ndash] Private=0, A random survey of AAN members finds that practitioners are aware of the importance of mood problems in patients with epilepsy. Further, the respondents often ask these patients about their mood and initiate a plan of treatment. However, since completing this survey was voluntary, the sample may have been biased in favor of such responses. Difficulty with insurance issues when trying to obtain psychiatric care is consistently reported., (Supported by Epilepsy Foundation.)