[Lifestyle Guidance and Counselling for Patients with Epilepsy]

Apart from epilepsy specialists, neurosurgeons should also play an important role for epilepsy treatment in the Japanese healthcare structure. This review focuses on lifestyle guidance and counselling methods for general neurosurgeons to reduce risks of seizures in epilepsy patients, and to maximize patient independence. Reduction of seizure precipitants such as sleep deprivation, emotional stress, fatigue, and alcohol is key to epilepsy practice with appropriate anti-seizure medication. The modular service package epilepsy(MOSES)program may prove useful for patients by increasing awareness of their own seizure precipitants and empower them to manage their individual risks. This article also addresses the topics of practical guidance for counselling in(1)school life;(2)sports and physical activities;(3)pregnancy; and(4)eating habits. Multidimensional collaborations should be recommended to reduce the burden of hectic neurosurgeons.