Impact of epilepsy surgery on the quality of life of a low-income population through the application of the Qolie-10 scale

Abstract

To describe the impact of epilepsy surgery on quality of life through the application of the quality of life in epilepsy (QOLIE-10) scale in a low income population. We conducted an observational, descriptive, and cross-sectional study. The data for all patients who underwent epilepsy surgery from the aforementioned period were registered retrospectively through a review of their clinical history. Clinical variables of interest for this study were obtained through phone contact, and the QOLIE-10 scale was applied. This study included a total of 89 patients with whom phone contact was established and who met the inclusion criteria. Of these patients, 30.3% were without anti-seizure medication at the time of the survey's application, and only 19.1% were still under polytherapy. A total of 47.1% of the patients had returned to some work activity that they would have not been able to perform before because of their disease. All of the components of the QOLIE-10 scale improved significantly (p < 0.05) after the surgical procedure, except the variable of "fear of the sudden occurrence of seizures". The variables with greatest impact after the surgical procedure were depression, work activity, and quality of life in general. Epilepsy surgery has a positive impact on the quality of life of patients with low resources and in vulnerable social conditions. It is still to be determined if, in this population, work and social reintegration have a greater impact on the quality of life than other clinical and/or paraclinical variables.