Clinical presentation of anxiety among patients with epilepsy

Abstract

Different factors have been related with interictal anxiety, reported in 10%-25% of patients with epilepsy. We determined the frequency of interictal anxiety in 196 patients with active epilepsy in a cross-sectional survey to know which symptoms of anxiety were most frequently reported in patients with epilepsy and to analyze the factors associated with their presence. Patients were assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), MontgomeryAsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), and the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA). Data were analyzed with a logistic regression model. The HAMA ratings revealed that 38.8% experienced signifi cant anxiety symptoms, as defi ned by a rating above 18 points. Use of primidone, depression, cryptogenic, and posttraumatic etiologies signifi cantly predicted anxiety after logistic regression. Symptoms related to higher scores on HAMA were anxious mood, tension, insomnia, intellectual function, depressed mood, cardiovascular and genitourinary symptoms. Further studies should be performed to defi ne the role of psychosocial factors in the development and evolution of anxiety among these patients.

Anxiety symptoms in patients with frontal lobe epilepsy versus generalized epilepsy

“…These figures are somewhat higher than the 20.5% reported in a sample of 515 patients with epilepsy. 18 Another study using the HAMA, reported a figure of 39% in a sample of 196 patients with epilepsy, 19 a rate similar to our results. Our findings are in line with the majority of the literature; the frequency of anxiety disorders was reported between 15% and 25%.…”

Targeted Self-Management of Epilepsy and Mental Illness for individuals with epilepsy and psychiatric comorbidity

“…The primary outcome was change from baseline in depressive symptoms, as measured by the rater-administered MADRS [26]. While a variety of standardized tools are used to measure depression in epilepsy, [27–29] the MADRS has been used in recent large cross-sectional and longitudinal studies of people with epilepsy. [30, 31] Secondary outcomes included the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS)[32] for global psychiatric symptoms and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) for self-rated assessment of depressive symptoms [33].…”

A primary healthcare screening tool to identify depression and anxiety disorders among people with epilepsy in Zambia

“…Lopez-Gomez and colleagues (7) conducted a cross-sectional survey in all consecutive outpatients with epilepsy who attended the National Institute of Neurology of Mexico between September 2006 and March 2007 and found that 38.8% had symptoms of anxiety. Rai et al (1) found that general anxiety disorders were the most common anxiety disorder with 12.5% of people with epilepsy reporting this condition.…”