Clinical Correlates of Perceived Stigma Among People Living with Epilepsy Enrolled in a Self-management Clinical Trial
Abstract number :
1.141
Submission category :
13. Health Services (Delivery of Care, Access to Care, Health Care Models)
Year :
2024
Submission ID :
141
Source :
www.aesnet.org
Presentation date :
12/7/2024 12:00:00 AM
Published date :
Authors :
Presenting Author: Martha Sajatovic, MD – Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Gena Ghearing, MD – University of Iowa
Maegan Tyrrell, BA – University of Iowa
Jessica Black, BA – Case Western Reserve University
Jacqueline Krehel-Montgomery, BA – Case Western Reserve University
Grace McDermott, BS – Case Western Reserve University
Joy Yala, BS – Case Western Reserve University
Clara Adeniyi, BS – Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Richard Barigye, BSc – Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Farren Briggs, PhD – University of Miami
Rationale: Stigma is a pervasive barrier for people living with epilepsy (PLWE) and can have substantial negative effects. This study evaluated clinical correlates of stigma in a research sample of PLWE considered to be at high risk due to frequent seizures or other negative health events.
Methods: Analyses were derived from baseline data from an ongoing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) -funded randomized controlled trial (RCT) testing an epilepsy self-management approach. Standardized measures assessed socio-demographics, perceived epilepsy stigma, epilepsy-related self-efficacy, epilepsy self-management competency, health literacy, depressive symptom severity, functional status, social support and epilepsy-related quality of life.
Results: There were 160 individuals, mean age of 39.4, (Standard deviation/SD=12.2) enrolled in the RCT, 107 (66.9%) women, with a mean age of epilepsy onset of 23.9 (SD 14.0) years. The mean seizure frequency in the prior 30 days was 6.4 (SD 21.2). Individual factors correlated with worse perceived stigma were not being married or cohabiting with someone (p= 0.016), lower social support (p< 0.0001), lower self-efficacy (p< 0.0001), and lower functional status for both physical health (p= 0.018) and mental health (p< 0.0001). Perceived stigma was associated with worse depressive symptom severity (p< 0.0001). Multivariable linear regression found significant independent associations between stigma and lower self-efficacy (p = 0.0096), lower social support (p< 0.0001), and greater depression severity (p< 0.0001).
Conclusions: Perceived epilepsy stigma was positively correlated with depression severity and negatively correlated with social support and self-efficacy. Providers caring for PLWE may help reduce epilepsy stigma by screening for and treating depression, encouraging supportive social relationships, and providing epilepsy self-management support. Awareness of epilepsy stigma and associated factors may help reduce some of the hidden burden born by PLWE.
Funding: This publication is a product of a Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research Center supported by Cooperative Agreement Number 6 U48DP006389 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The findings and conclusion in the report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the CDC.
Health Services (Delivery of Care, Access to Care, Health Care Models)