Impact of seizure-related injuries on quality of life

Our aim is to assess the types and frequency of seizure-related injuries and to determine their effects on Quality of Life (QoL).

Fifty-seven patients with epilepsy were included to our study. The demographic and clinical data of all the participants were recorded. All patients completed the Quality of Life in Epilepsy Inventory 89 (QOLIE-89). Injury types were classified as burns, head trauma, dental traumas, fractures, body injuries, penetrating traumas, road injuries, and drowning.

Forty-two patients had seizure-related physical injury history whereas 15 of them declared no history of injury. Lower education levels and more frequent seizures were associated with higher seizure-related injury rates (p < 0.05). The most common types of seizure-related injuries were head trauma (22%) and fractures (17%). Fifty-seven (64%)of the injuries took place at home. There was no difference in QOLIE-89 scores between patients with or without seizure-related injury. Multiple injuries, admission to emergency, older than 20 years of the first seizure-related injury, and shorter than 10 years after last seizure-related injury are negatively effective on the QoL scores.

Patients with epilepsy are likely to have seizure-related injuries which may be severe but do not affect the patients' QoL. Seizure-related injuries most commonly occur at home and therefore simple precautions (supervised bathing, using microwave ovens instead of classical stoves, avoiding electric irons and electric heaters, and sleeping close to the floor to avoid falling) taken to reduce the incidence of seizure-related injuries will help reduce hospitalizations and will also be cost-effective.