ASSESSMENT OF QUALITY OF LIFE IN EPILEPTIC PATIENTS IN A TERTIARY CARE HEALTH CENTRE A CROSS SECTIONAL STUDY
Dr. Ravi C Sharma, Dr. Dinesh Dutt Sharma* and Dr. Kamal Parkash
ABSTRACT
Background: Assessment of the Quality of Life (QOL) in epilepsy has currently been highlighted to provide thorough care to patients. There are many factors which influence the quality of life of people suffering with epilepsy, including seizure severity, stigma, fear etc. This study was planned to assess the impact of epilepsy on quality of life of epileptic patients. Methods: The study was conducted in the department of Psychiatry at a tertiary care hospital over a period of six months. Sixty patients were included in the study after fulfilling the inclusion criteria. All the patients seeking treatment in the Out Patient Department were screened, assessed and then all the procedures were fully explained to them. QOLIE-10 was used to assess the quality of life. Results: Sixty patients with epilepsy consisting of 36 men (60.0%) and 24 women (40.0%) were included. Their ages ranged from 12 to 58, the mean age being 28.5 (SD = 8.4). Out of the sixty patients, 35 patients (58.3%) were suffering from partial epilepsies and 25 patients (41.7%) were suffering from generalized epilepsies. Mean QOLIE-10 total scores were 17.76, 17.54, 26.51 and 23.43 in married, widowed, unmarried and separated individuals, respectively. The differences in the means were statistically significant on ANOVA (p value 0.001). Frequency of seizures per month was positively correlated with QOLIE-10 total scores (Pearson Correlation 0.71) and was statistically significant (p value
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