ABSTRACT

We investigated how seizure syndromes and treatment methods correlated with the quality of life and social functioning of patients with epilepsy and their relatives-caregivers.

A total of 203 patients with epilepsy and their relatives-caregivers were divided into four groups. The patients were administered the following assessments: Quality of Life in Epilepsy Inventory and the Social Functioning Scale. The patients and their relatives-caregivers were administered the Hamilton Depression and Anxiety Rating Scale. The Kruskal–Wallis Test and Mann–Whitney U Test were used for statistical analysis.

When the quality of life and social functioning subscales were evaluated, the patient group with resistant temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) had the lowest scores, while the highest scores occurred in the TLE group that had undergone surgical intervention and had entered remission with medical treatment. For both patients and their relatives-caregivers, the anxiety and depression scores were the highest in the resistant TLE group and the lowest in the surgical and remission group.

Control of seizures was the most important variable affecting the quality of life of patients with epilepsy and their relativescaregivers. Treatment plans for epilepsy patients should encompass the quality of life considerations, including measures to increase social functioning such as assessments of comorbid psychiatric conditions like anxiety and depression.

Keywords: Anxiety in epilepsy, depression in epilepsy, social functioning in epilepsy, Quality of Life in Epilepsy Inventory