title: Group psychoeducation as treatment for psychological nonepileptic seizures.
abstract: There is no consensus for the type(s) of treatment(s) that may be effective or ineffective for psychological nonepileptic seizures (PNES). We provided an open-ended group psychotherapy program to 10 patients with PNES, including a disorder-specific psychoeducation treatment component in the first 10 weeks. Seizure frequency and questionnaire responses were examined pre- and posttreatment in all 7 of 10 individuals who completed the majority of the psychoeducational sessions. Four individuals experienced no change in seizure frequency; in three of these this was due to a cessation of events at treatment initiation. Two individuals experienced a decline; and one, an increase, in seizure frequency. Significant decreases were reported in posttraumatic (P=0.003) and dissociative (P=0.04) symptoms and emotionally based coping mechanisms (P=0.03). There was also a trend toward improved quality of life (P=0.07). Experience/expression of anger remained stable. Psychoeducation may be an effective method of treating PNES and may improve coping strategies and reduce PNES-associated psychopathology in some patients. Additional controlled studies on larger samples are needed.
authors.affiliation: New York University Comprehensive Epilepsy Center, 403 East 34th Street, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10016, USA. charles.zaroff@med.nyu.edu
authors.forename: Charles M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Zaroff
authors.forename: Lorna
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Myers
authors.forename: William B
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Barr
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Luciano
authors.forename: Orrin
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Devinsky
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004569:Electroencephalography / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011602:Psychophysiologic Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D011613:Psychotherapy; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012640:Seizures / Q000628:therapy*; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000628:therapy; D013226:Status Epilepticus / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome