title: Patient knowledge about issues related to pregnancy in epilepsy: a cross-sectional study.
abstract: In 2009, new guidelines were established by the American Academy of Neurology regarding pregnancy in women with epilepsy. A questionnaire was developed to assess patient knowledge of current guidelines related to epilepsy and pregnancy. Patients were recruited from a single outpatient clinic in a large Canadian tertiary care center. Patients were eligible to participate if they were female, of reproductive age, had active epilepsy for at least 6 months and were not cognitively impaired. One hundred women completed the survey (response rate 87%) with a median score of 40%. A significant association was found between total score and years of education (p<0.001). Significant associations were not found between total score and epilepsy duration (p=0.37), previously being pregnant (p=0.22), and polytherapy (p=0.31). Patient knowledge of the impact of epilepsy on pregnancy is low. More knowledge translation efforts are required to increase knowledge of issues related to pregnancy for women with epilepsy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Neurosciences and Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada.
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Metcalfe
authors.forename: Jodie I
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.forename: Fatema
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Abdulla
authors.forename: Samuel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wiebe
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hanson
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Federico
authors.forename: Nathalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Jette
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications; D012044:Regression Analysis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014930:Women; D055815:Young Adult