Washington Psychosocial Seizure Inventory: a multiinstitutional study in Japan

No reports of the Washington Psychosocial Seizure Inventory (WPSI) have yet been presented from Asian countries in detail. We performed a multiinstitutional study of this test in 652 Japanese subjects. The mean value of the Lie Scale was high, and only one third of our subjects were under the limit of the original criterion; this has been the biggest obstacle to use of the validity scales of this test in Japan. The profile form of the clinical scales was very similar to those reported from other countries. According to the relation between clinical characteristics and the WPSI scales, seizure frequency showed the strongest influence. In a comparison of whole subjects, mean scores of the clinical scales in Japan remained at an intermediate value or lower. This result was obviously distorted by the high score of the Lie Scale. When comparison was restricted to cases with valid Lie Scale scores, the values of five clinical scales showed high levels. Therefore, Japanese patients among developed countries apparently showed relatively severe levels of problems. We conclude that the WPSI could be a useful examination in Japan to determine reliably the various psychosocial problems of epileptic persons, but use of the Lie Scale according to the original criterion is not practical. Modifications of the limitation may be needed.