Poor adherence to antiepileptic drugs and associated factors in a sample of Cameroon epilepsy patients

Objectives:The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence and factors associated to poor adherence to antiepileptic drugs in a referral hospital of Douala, Cameroon.Method:This was a cross-sectional and descriptive study of antiepileptic drugs (AED) adherence carried out in a group of selected patients with epilepsy. Patients were recruited from January to June 2018 at the Neurology Department of the Douala Laquintinie Hospital. Non-adherence to antiepileptic drugs was measured by the 8-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale and logistic regression was used to look for significant associations.Results:Participants (n=102) were of mean age 28.39 ± 19.74 years-old with 55% of male sex. Non-adherence was observed in 84 patients giving a prevalence rate of 82.35%. The factors associated to poor adherence to AEDs were forgetfulness (p<0.0001), lack of financial resources (p<0.0001), not having medication on hand, shortage of drugs at the pharmacy (p<0.0001) and lack of information on the disease (p<0.0001).Conclusion:Non-adherence to AEDs is common in Cameroon. Targeted management programs and communication strategies as well as health workers training are necessary to improve adherence to AED treatment in patients with epilepsy and avoid consequences such as seizure recurrence, status epilepticus and poor quality of life

Polymyositis anti-SRP antibodies and pregnancy about 2 cases.

Anti-SRP myopathy represents 4 to 6% of all the inflammatory myopathies. It has been described since the 80s and its influence on pregnancy and vice versa has been highlighted recently. We report two cases of anti-SRP myopathy associated with pregnancy. In the first case, the initial manifestations of the disease started in post partum and the second case was an anti-SRP myopathy patient before pregnancy. In both cases we objectified outbreaks during post-partum. Pregnancy seems to promote outbreaks. The inactive myopathy seems to presents no serious maternal-fetal complications as well as the usual dose of corticosteroids. The treatment (corticosteroid) during pregnancy is indicated given the risk of worsening during the post-partum.