title: Safety, Awareness, and Familiarity regarding Epilepsy in Teenage Years (SAFETY): understanding the adolescents' perspective about their disease.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The objective of this study was to evaluate the understanding of adolescent patients regarding epilepsy.
  
  
  METHODS
  The SAFETY (Safety, Awareness, and Familiarity regarding Epilepsy in Teenage Years) questionnaire (content validity index: 0.96, Flesch readability score: 66.6) was administered to 165 cognitively normal adolescents with epilepsy (85 females, mean age: 15.2 ± 1.6 years, range: 13-18 years). The first part of the questionnaire was devised to evaluate knowledge about epilepsy and antiepileptic medications (SAFETY-K: 7 questions). The second part queried lifestyle modifications and safety (SAFETY-S: 10 questions). Female participants answered 5 additional questions related to reproductive health (RH questionnaire).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The correct response rate for the composite SAFETY questionnaire was 51.5%. The average rates of correct responses for the SAFETY-K and SAFETY-S questions were 47.9% and 53.9%, respectively. On univariate logistic regression analysis, factors which were significant predictors of correct responses included age (odds ratio: 1.8, C.I. = 1.3-2.4), race (Caucasian vs. African-American; odds ratio: 3.9, C.I. = 1.4-10.4), and employment of at least one parent in a professional occupation (odds ratio: 3.3, C.I. = 1.1-10.3). The correct response rate did not correlate with the duration of epilepsy, extent of seizure control, number of antiepileptic medications, parental educational, or (un)employment status. The mean rate of correct responses for the RH questions amongst teenage girls was 17.4%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is lack of awareness about epilepsy and its associated lifestyle modifications in adolescents with epilepsy seen at our institution. This is especially true in young adolescents, African-American patients, and those whose parents are not employed in professional occupations. Teenage girls with epilepsy appear to have limited knowledge with respect to contraception and childbearing.
authors.affiliation: Division of Neurology, Carman and Ann Adams Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Wayne State University School of Medicine, 3901 Beaubien Blvd., Detroit, MI 48201, USA. Electronic address: ragarwal@med.wayne.edu.
authors.forename: Rajkumar
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Agarwal
authors.affiliation: Division of Neurology, Carman and Ann Adams Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Wayne State University School of Medicine, 3901 Beaubien Blvd., Detroit, MI 48201, USA. Electronic address: ripate@med.wayne.edu.
authors.forename: Riddhiben
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Patel
authors.affiliation: Division of Neurology, Carman and Ann Adams Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Wayne State University School of Medicine, 3901 Beaubien Blvd., Detroit, MI 48201, USA. Electronic address: kset@dmc.org.
authors.forename: Kallol
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Set
authors.affiliation: Department of Biostatistics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Wayne State University School of Medicine, 3901 Beaubien Blvd., Detroit, MI 48201, USA. Electronic address: mdaoud@med.wayne.edu.
authors.forename: Marwan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zidan
authors.affiliation: Division of Neurology, Carman and Ann Adams Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Wayne State University School of Medicine, 3901 Beaubien Blvd., Detroit, MI 48201, USA. Electronic address: lsivaswamy@med.wayne.edu.
authors.forename: Lalitha
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sivaswamy
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001741:Black or African American; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001364:Awareness; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology*; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D061214:Patient Safety; D011446:Prospective Studies; D021641:Recognition, Psychology; D012640:Seizures / Q000517:prevention & control; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D044465:White People
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants
keywords: Adolescent; Epilepsy; Knowledge; Lifestyle