Cross sectional study of reporting of epileptic seizures to general practitioners
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One sixth of patients who experienced seizures in the past year, did not reveal details to their general practitioner, finds a study published in this week's BMJ. Dr Jamie Dalrymple from the University of East Anglia and Dr John Appleby from the King's Fund in London suggest that a reluctance to report seizures may be because epilepsy affects their eligibility for a driving licence and access to various employment and leisure activities.
Dalrymple and Appleby analysed responses from 111 epileptic patients to an anonymous questionnaire. 42 patients had previously admitted to their family doctor that they had experienced a seizure within the last twelve months, however in the anonymous questionnaire 60 patients admitted to a recent seizure. Of these 40 per cent held a driving licence, only a quarter of whom admitted this to their doctor, say the authors.
They conclude that some patients clearly perceive that the benefits of concealment of seizures outweigh the risks, but that such concealment can lead to inadequate treatment - if doctors don't know that they have experienced a seizure then they will be unable to treat them appropriately. They say that doctors need to put more effort into explaining this to patients.
Contact:
Dr Jamie Dalrymple, General Practitioner, Schools of Health, University of East Anglia, Norwich
Tel: 44-1603-453161
Email: j.dalrymple@uea.ac.uk