Subjective Sleep Disturbance in Patients with Partial Epilepsy: A Questionnaire‐based Study on Prevalence and Impact on Quality of Life

Abstract

Summary:Purpose: This study was designed to assess whether sleep disturbance is more frequent among patients with partial seizures and what impact on quality of life (QoL) sleep disturbance may have on patients with partial seizures.Methods: Questionnaire booklets were mailed to 1,183 patients from four Dutch clinics. Each patient was asked to find two age-and gender-matched controls to complete the same set of questionnaires [Sleep Diagnosis List (SDL), Medical Outcomes Study (MOS)-Sleep Scale, Groningen Sleep Questionnaire, Epworth Sleepiness Scale, and the SF-36 Health Survey]. The prevalence of sleep disturbance, based on the SDL, was compared between those with partial epilepsy and controls. Mean scores on sleep and the SF-36 Physical (PCS) and Mental (MCS) Component Summary scales were compared.Results: Responses from 486 patients and 492 controls were analyzed. Respondents with partial epilepsy had a highly significant, twofold higher prevalence of sleep disturbance compared with controls (38.6 vs. 18.0%; p < 0.0001). Most sleep-disorder subscales showed significant abnormalities in respondents with epilepsy, compared with controls. Mean SF-36 MCS and PCS scores were significantly lower in respondents with epilepsy compared with controls in both the strata with sleep disturbance and without (all p values <0.05). The presence of a sleep disturbance in respondents with epilepsy was associated with the greatest impairment in QoL.Conclusions: Sleep disturbance is more than twice as prevalent in persons with partial epilepsy compared with controls, and most domains of sleep are significantly disturbed. Persons with partial epilepsy have significant QoL impairment, and sleep disturbance further compounds this.

Insomnia and Epilepsy: A Questionnaire-Based Study

“…(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14) 51 (33%) Clinical insomnia (moderate severity) (15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21) 63 (41%) Clinical insomnia (severe) (22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28) 15 (10%) Most patients were found to have low depressive scores, and this may be secondary to partial and/or successful treatment. Depression represents one of the most common comorbidities of epilepsy and has profound negative impact on the quality of life of patients.…”

“…[1][2][3][4][5] Polysomnogram studies of patients with epilepsy have shown disrupted sleep with increased sleep onset latency, increased number of nocturnal awakenings, and altered sleep architecture. [6][7][8][9] Despite the increasing recognition of sleep disturbances as predictors of quality of life in these patients, 1,[10][11][12] insomnia in epilepsy has been poorly investigated. Some studies have focused on the impact of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) on sleep quality.…”

Third International Congress on Epilepsy, Brain, and Mind: Part 2

“…Similarly, forgetting over a four-day delay has been found to be greater in those with epileptiform discharges during that time period than those with normal EEG [105]. One question that arises from this work is whether activity during sleep accounts for ALF, particularly since impaired memory in people with epilepsy has been identified following 24-hour delays [106], sleep complaints are common in people with simple and complex partial seizures [107], people with Transient Epileptic Amnesia (who commonly display ALF) often experience amnestic episodes upon awakening prior to treatment [108], and people with TLE and bilateral mesial temporal sclerosis show reduced strengthening of memories during sleep [109].…”

Tradução e adaptação cultural da Seizure Severity Questionnaire: resultados preliminares

“…Nesta amostra houve correlação estatística entre o domínio Alterações do Sono e a Freqüência de crises. Há estudos sugerindo que indivíduos com epilepsia parcial têm prevalência duas vezes maior de distúrbios do sono quando comparados a população controle, com prejuízo importante na QV (8) . A presença das crises pode ainda afetar profundamente a arquitetura do sono, bem como o uso de algumas drogas antiepilépticas que fragmentam o sono (3) .…”