Depression and Anxiety in the Epileptic Patients: the Association With Demographic and Seizure-Related Variables

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Depression and anxiety are common psychiatric symptoms in patients with epilepsy, exerting a profound negative effect on health-related quality of life. Several issues, however, pertaining to their association with psychosocial, seizure-related and medication factors, remain controversial. In the present study we have investigated the association of depression and anxiety with various demographic and seizure-related variables in patients with newly-diagnosed and chronic epilepsy. METHODS: We investigated 80 patients with epilepsy (46.3% males, mean age 36.1+/-11.4 years, range 18~64; mean disease duration, 13.4+/-12.2 years). Depression and anxiety were assessed in the interictal state with the Beck Depression Inventory, 21-item version (BDI-21) and the state and trait subscales of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-S and STAI-T), respectively. The association of depression and anxiety with various variables was investigated using univariate analyses and multiple linear regression analyses. RESULTS: Duration of epilepsy, the number of side effects and the number of GABAergic anti-epileptic drugs were correlated with depression, together accounting for 25.1% of the variation of the BDI-21. The STAI-S index was significantly associated with occupation status and the number of GABAergic anti-epileptic drugs accounting for 27.4% of the variation of the STAI-S. Finally, the number of side effects was correlated with trait anxiety. CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that the duration of epilepsy, occupation status, GABAergic anti-epileptic drugs and the number of side effects are risk factors for the development of depression and/or anxiety.