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Published on: May 16, 2019
[Anxiety about Health of Patients Suffering from Epilepsy]
Julia Roth-Rawald1, Juliane Friedrich1, Hans Beatus Straub1,2
1Abteilung für Klinische Psychologie und Psychotherapie, Universität Potsdam, Deutschland.
Background:
The presence of somatic diseases makes diagnosis of health-related anxiety difficult. Studies have shown that a significant proportion of patients suffering from somatic diseases also suffer from illness anxiety.
Objective:
Patients suffering from epilepsy were examined, for whom no data regarding their illness anxiety had previously been obtained.
Method:
76 epileptics were analyzed regarding their psychological distress (Mini-SCL), fear of recurrence (PA-F) and hypochondriacal traits (MIHT).
Results:
In general, epileptics experienced the same level of distress and fear in comparison to a norm sample. At the same time, 28% (overall distress) to 45% (anxiety) of the study participants were observed to have abnormal values. The fear of recurrence was low in comparison to other somatic diagnosis groups. Hypochondriac traits were seen in 7% (perceptive) to 13% (affective/behavioral) of the respondents.
Conclusion:
An increased awareness of illness anxiety in patients can help improve healthcare and quality of life of epileptics.
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