Psychiatric Symptomatology and Health-related Quality of Life in Children With Epilepsy

Abstract

Introduction

There is a limited amount of data regarding the relationship between epilepsy and psychiatric symptoms and quality of life (QoL) in children and adolescents.

Objectives

The aim of this study was to determine the levels of depression, anxiety and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms and health-related quality of life (HRQL) in children and adolescents with epilepsy.

Methods

The sample consisted of 75 children with epilepsy and 50 healthy controls aged 8–18 years. Questionnaires were used to evaluate the psychiatric status and HRQL of the patients.

Results

Patients had lower child-rated psychosocial and total area HRQL scores, and lower parent-rated psychosocial, physical and total area HRQL scores than the controls did. Inattention scores of the epilepsy group were significantly higher compared to controls. No significant differences were found between patients and controls in terms of anxiety and depression scores. Regarding determinants of HRQL, severity of depression and anxiety had a decreasing effect on child-rated HRQL total scores; and severity of anxiety had a decreasing effect on parent-rated HRQL total scores.

Conclusions

Epilepsy is associated with poor QoL in childhood and severity of depression and anxiety are among the determinants of QoL. Clinicians should be more aware of accompanying psychiatric symptoms in epileptic patients and take the necessary precautions in the early period of the illness in an effort to improve QoL.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.