Psychiatric comorbidity in epilepsy study subjects

Abstract

Background and Objective:

People with epilepsy often experience psychiatric comorbidity. This study aims to investigate  the relationship among  seizure regulation, psychiatric comorbidity, and antiepileptic drug use in a group of individuals with epilepsy in Pakistan.

Methods:

This  is an observational study conducted at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, over a period of six months (1^st June – 31^st Dec 2022). One-hundred-twenty people (sample size) with epilepsy above the age of 18 with confirmed diagnosis of epilepsy were included in the study who completed a questionnaire that assessed  their seizure control, psychiatric comorbidity, and antiepileptic drug use. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 25

Results:

The majority of  participants (80.8%) reported effective seizure control , while 19.2% reported ineffective seizure control . Regarding psychiatric comorbidity, 84.2% of the participants reported some form of psychiatric comorbidity, with depression being the most commonly reported (31.7%). In terms of antiepileptic drug use, 69.2% of the participants reported being on monotherapy, 28.3% reported being on polytherapy, and 2.5% reported not being on any medication.

Conclusion:

 People with epilepsy have a significant likelihood of experiencing psychiatric comorbidity which highlights the need for screening and therapy.