Adherence to medicines and self-management of epilepsy: a community-based study

This community-based survey of people with epilepsy who were divided into adherent and non-adherent groups used validated scales to determine factors associated with medicine non-adherence and self-management of epilepsy to identify those people at risk of poor self-management behavior or medicines non-adherence. Using demographic characteristics, it is possible to identify those people at risk during a regular epilepsy review. Adults with epilepsy were identified from general practices using clinical and drug searches with the diagnosis confirmed by case notes analysis. Four hundred thirty-eight people with epilepsy were divided into adherent and non-adherent groups using medication records and self-report of non-adherent behavior. Data were also collected on patient demographics, seizure activity and self-management behavior. Low self-management scores and recent seizures were associated with non-adherence. Young adults, those in education or employment, those living with others and those who had recent seizures were more likely to have low self-management scores.