How do anxiety, depression, and stigma affect quality of life in people with epilepsy?

Abstract

Background

Anxiety, depression, and stigma can significantly affect the quality of life of people with epilepsy. This study was carried out to determine the relationship between these factors.

Method

The study was conducted with 325 people with epilepsy admitted to the neurology outpatient clinic of a training and research hospital in Istanbul, Türkiye. Data were collected using a General Information Form, the Depression in Neurological Disorders Scale-Epilepsy (NDDI-E), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 Scale (GAD-7), Epilepsy Self-Stigma Scale (ESSS), and Quality of Life in Epilepsy Scale (QOLIE-31). Data were analyzed using the Student’s t-test, one-way ANOVA, Pearson correlation, and multiple linear regression test.

Results

Of the included patients, 60.9 % were female, 61.5 % were married, and 84.3 % had generalized seizures. The mean anxiety score was 16.80 ± 6.13, and 13.5 % of patients had mild anxiety, 27.7 % had moderate anxiety, and 58.8 % had severe anxiety. The mean depression score was 14.07 ± 3.58, and 39.7 % of the patients were at risk for depression. The mean total score for stigma was 14.29 ± 5.67, and the mean total score of the quality of life scale was 47.54 ± 11.36. Quality of life decreased with increasing levels of depression (r = -0.418; p < 0.001), anxiety (r = -0.292; p < 0.001), and stigma (r = -0.224; p < 0.001). Depression, anxiety, stigma, and seizure frequency explained 25 % of the total variance in quality of life.

Conclusion

There was a negative correlation between anxiety, depression, stigma, and quality of life. These factors, as well as seizure frequency, were statistically significant predictors of quality of life in people with epilepsy.