The association of psychosocial variables with adherence to antiepileptic drugs in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy

Abstract

ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to explore the association between psychosocial factors and adherence to antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). MethodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted with 123 individuals with TLE, admitted to our epilepsy center from December 2015 to May 2017. The participants completed standardized self-report questionnaires measuring medication adherence, anxiety, depression, and family and social support. Adherence was measured by the 8-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS), and logistic regression was used to examine statistically significant associations of different variables with adherence. ResultsWe found a 33.3% rate of poor AED adherence. Moderate-to-severe anxiety (odds ratio (OR)=2.851, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.138–7.144, P=0.025) and the presence of hippocampal sclerosis (OR=3.098, 95% CI=1.259–7.620, P=0.014) were positively associated with poor adherence to antiepileptic drugs. Social support (OR=0.925, 95% CI=0.863–0.990, P=0.025) was negatively associated with poor adherence. Neither depression nor family support was associated with adherence. ConclusionOne-third of patients with TLE were prone to poor AED adherence, especially individuals with hippocampal sclerosis. Intervention approaches designed to improve AED adherence in patients with TLE should focus on psychosocial factors.