Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Jan 8;6(1):120-126.
doi: 10.1002/epi4.12449. eCollection 2021 Mar.

Quality of life among caregivers of children with epilepsy: A cross-sectional study at Eastern Nepal

Rita Pokharel  1 , Prakash Poudel  2 , Sami Lama  1
Affiliations

Quality of life among caregivers of children with epilepsy: A cross-sectional study at Eastern Nepal

Rita Pokharel et al. Epilepsia Open. .

Abstract

Objective: To assess the quality of life among caregivers of children with epilepsy in a tertiary care center of eastern Nepal.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among primary caregivers of children with epilepsy, who accompanied their child in child neurology clinic. Consecutive sampling was done, and 106 respondents were interviewed. Data were collected using World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) scale and analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. Descriptive and Inferential statistics were applied.

Results: Mean WHOQOL-BREF score was 82.25 {standard deviation (SD) ±12. 11}. Transformed scores (0-100) for each domain were 57.98 ± 14.55 in physical, 55.87 ± 13.16 in psychological, 53.12 ± 13.42 in social, and 52.52 ± 13.04 in environmental domain. Mean score for overall perception of quality of life (QOL) was 2.71 ± 0.79 and was 3.12 ± 0.75 for overall perception of health. Living below poverty line (P = .03) and poor seizure control status of children (P = .46) were significantly associated with lower total QOL score. Living below poverty line was significantly associated with low social relationship (P = .003) and environment domain (<0.001) scores.

Significance: Epilepsy has a multifaceted impact on the lives of affected people. Caring children with epilepsy is associated with enormous psychosocial effects on parents and family members. Caregivers' QOL may affect the treatment and outcome of epilepsy in children. Given the consideration to scarcity of this kind of literature in Nepalese context, this study was conducted.

Keywords: Quality of Life; caregivers; child; epilepsy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

None. We confirm that we have read the Journal's position on issues involved in ethical publication and affirm that this report is consistent with those guidelines.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Theodore W, Spencer S, Wiebe S, Langfitt J, Ali A, Shafer P, et al. Epilepsy in North America: A Report Prepared under the Auspices of the Global Campaign against Epilepsy, the International Bureau for Epilepsy, the International League Against Epilepsy, and the World Health Organization. Epilepsia. 2006;47(10):1700–22. - PubMed
    1. Dua T, de Boer HM, Prilipko LL, Saxena S. Epilepsy care in the world: results of an ILAE/IBE/WHO global campaign against epilepsy survey. Epilepsia. 2006;47(7):1225. - PubMed
    1. Shah S, Sah C, Shahi A, Kc R. Caregiving burden and depression among caregivers of patient with epilepsy. J Psychiatr Assoc Nepal. 2019;8:40–4.
    1. Anu M, Suresh K, Basavanna PL. A cross‐sectional study of quality of life among subjects with epilepsy attending a tertiary care hospital. J Clin Diagn Res. 2016;10(12):OC13‐OC15. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Subki A, Mukhtar A, Al‐Harbi R, Alotaibi A, Mosaad F, Alsallum M, et al. The impact of pediatric epilepsy on children and families: a multicenter cross‐sectional study. Clin Pract Epidemiol Ment Health. 2018;14(1):323–33. - PMC - PubMed