Dataset Information

Impact of complementary and alternative medicines on antiepileptic medication adherence among epilepsy patients.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and its impact on antiepileptic drug (AED) adherence among patients with epilepsy.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was carried out on 100 epilepsy patients, aged 18?years or older that did not have any physical or psychiatric illness. A patient-administered questionnaire was used to assess their knowledge, attitude towards, practice, and perceived effectiveness (KAPP) of CAM. Established adherence assessment tools were used to determine patient medication adherence.

Results

The prevalence of CAM usage was found to be at 58%. CAM was used more frequently by males (n?=?32, 60.4%) than by females (n?=?26, 55.3%; p?=?0.609). The most commonly used CAM included vitamins and minerals (36%), ginseng (16%), antioxidants (15%), and acupuncture (12%). A significant number of patients had low knowledge of (59%) and a positive attitude (54%) toward complementary and alternative medicine. Main reasons for using CAM were a lower price, better availability, and inadequate seizure control by AEDs. About 43% of the patients who used CAM informed their doctor. Prevalence of non-adherence to AED therapy was found to be 68%. A significant association was found between non-adherence and CAM usage (p?ConclusionA high prevalence of CAM usage and non-adherence to AEDs among epilepsy patients was identified. CAM usage was associated with a non-adherence to AED therapy. This study highlights the need to explore CAM usage with patients before making clinical decisions to achieve the best outcomes from AED therapy.

SUBMITTER: Farrukh MJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7863518 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Impact of complementary and alternative medicines on antiepileptic medication adherence among epilepsy patients.

Farrukh Muhammad Junaid MJ Makmor-Bakry Mohd M Hatah Ernieda E Jan Tan Hui TH

BMC complementary medicine and therapies 20210204 1

<h4>Background</h4>The aim of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and its impact on antiepileptic drug (AED) adherence among patients with epilepsy.<h4>Methods</h4>A cross-sectional study was carried out on 100 epilepsy patients, aged 18 years or older that did not have any physical or psychiatric illness. A patient-administered questionnaire was used to assess their knowledge, attitude towards, practice, and perceived ef ...[more]

PMID: 33541336

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundIntegrative and complementary health approaches (ICHA) are often pursued by patients facing chronic illnesses. Most of the studies that investigated the factors associated with ICHA consumption have considered that the propensity to use ICHA is a stable or fixed characteristic of an individual. However, people may prefer using ICHA in some situations and not in others, depending on the characteristics of the illness to face. Moreover, the attitude toward ICHA may differ within a single individual and between individuals so that ICHA can be used either in addition to (i.e., complementary attitude) or in place of (i.e., alternative attitude). The present study aimed at examining distinct patterns of attitudes toward ICHA in people hypothetically facing chronic illnesses that differed according to severity and clinical expression.MethodsWe conducted a web-based study including 1807 participants who were asked to imagine that they had a particular chronic illness based on clinical vignettes (mental illnesses: depression, schizophrenia; somatic illnesses: rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis). Participants were invited to rate their perceived distress and social stigma associated with each illness as well as its perceived treatability. They also rated their belief in treatment effectiveness, and their treatment preference. Four patterns of treatment choice were determined: strictly conventional, weak or strong complementary, and alternative. Bayesian methods were used for statistical analyses.ResultsICHA were selected as complementary treatment option by more than 95% of people who hypothetically faced chronic illness. The complementary attitude towards ICHA (in addition to conventional treatment) was more frequent than the alternative one (in place of conventional treatment). Factors driving this preference included employment status, severity of illness, age and perceived distress, social stigma and treatability of the illness. When the label of illnesses was included in the vignettes, patterns of treatment preference were altered.ConclusionsThis study provides evidence that "medical pluralism" (i.e., the integration of ICHA with conventional treatment) is likely the norm for people facing both mental or somatic illness. However, our result must be interpreted with caution due to the virtual nature of this study. We suggest that taking attitudes toward ICHA into account is crucial for a better understanding of patients' motivation to use ICHA.

Project description:BackgroundThe world continues to be challenged by the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and preventive measures like maintaining social distancing and lockdowns challenge patients to attend regular follow-ups and get a refill for medication that causes adherence problems. Hence, this study attempts to assess the impact of COVID-19 on treatment follow-up and medication adherence among patients with epilepsy.MethodA total of 276 patients with epilepsy were enrolled in the study. Data collection was carried out through medical record reviews and patient interviews. Patients who visited Zewditu Memorial Hospital from August to September 2021 and those who had follow-up at least for two years before the outbreak of the pandemic were included. The data was analyzed using SPSS v.24.ResultAbout 69.6% of patients were adherent to their treatment and 83.3% of the patients had a seizure-free period of less than 1 year. Ninety (32.6%) of the participants missed their treatment follow-up during the pandemic, mainly due to fear of being infected with COVID-19. Sixty-eight (24.6%) patients have experienced increased seizure episodes during the pandemic as compared to the previous times. Moreover, 56 (20.3%) participants were not taking their antiseizure medications (ASMs) during the pandemic because of the unavailability of medications and they discontinued hospital visits for their medication refills. Among those who missed their treatment follow-up, 20% had seizure-related physical injuries. Only educational level has a significant association with visiting health facilities during the pandemic. Thus, participants who completed college and above (OR = 2.58, 95% CI (1.32-6.38)) were more likely to attend their follow-up during the pandemics as compared to participants who can't read and write.ConclusionThe present study revealed that COVID-19 might have impacts on treatment follow-up and medication adherence due to fear of infection, travel restrictions and the indirect impact on the availability and affordability of medications. These might lead to poor treatment outcomes like increased seizure frequency and seizure-related physical injuries.

Dataset Information

Impact of complementary and alternative medicines on antiepileptic medication adherence among epilepsy patients.

Background

Methods

Results

Publications

Impact of complementary and alternative medicines on antiepileptic medication adherence among epilepsy patients.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets