title: Patients' knowledge about their disorder: perspective of patients with epilepsy in a tertiary health facility in southwestern Nigeria.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Previous studies have shown that patients with epilepsy do not have adequate knowledge about their disorder, suggesting that patient education is a vital part of comprehensive care for epilepsy. The goal of this study was to evaluate what Nigerian patients with epilepsy know about their disorder.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-six patients with EEG- and clinically confirmed epilepsy participated in the study. The patients completed the Epilepsy Patients Knowledge Questionnaire. The questionnaire includes topics related to etiology of epilepsy, safety, compliance, legal issues of driving, and employment. The questionnaire scores were correlated with demographic variables, duration of epilepsy, and level of education of the patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age of the respondents was 26.78 ± 9.27 years; there were 27 males and 19 females. The mean duration of epilepsy in the group was 7.6 ± 7.5 years. The mean rates of correct responses to the issues of safety and compliance were 31.6 and 76.8%, respectively. The mean scores on legal issues of driving and employment were 45.7 and 42.4%, respectively. The lowest score (10.9%) was on the etiology of epilepsy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Nigerian patients with epilepsy lack adequate knowledge about their disorder, and there is a need for improved educational intervention in these patients.
authors.affiliation: Neurology Unit, Department of Medicine, Federal Medical Centre, Owo, Ondo State, Nigeria. taosunmonu@yahoo.com
authors.forename: T A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Sunmonu
authors.forename: O T
authors.initials: OT
authors.lastname: Afolabi
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Komolafe
authors.forename: A O
authors.initials: AO
authors.lastname: Ogunrin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006268:Health Facilities; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009549:Nigeria / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult