title: Periconceptional folic acid supplementation among pregnant women with epilepsy in a developing country: a retroprospective survey in China.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aims of this study were to investigate the implementation of guidelines on periconceptional folic acid supplementation among pregnant women with epilepsy (WWE) in China and to identify its potential correlations with selected sociodemographic and clinical factors.
  
  
  METHODS
  A detailed investigation was conducted in China using a structured questionnaire from December 2013 to May 2014. Data on the awareness and use of folic acid supplementation, as well as sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, were collected from 153 pregnant WWE. Descriptive analysis, followed by univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses, was applied to the data from this survey.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among the enrolled subjects, 67.3% became pregnant after the promulgation of the relevant guidelines. Only 26.2% of them knew the exact effects of folic acid, and 73.8% had taken folic acid at some point during periconception. In addition, the folic acid intake of most of these women (67.1%) did not exceed that of the average pregnant woman. The prevalence of folic acid supplementation for pregnant WWE three months before pregnancy was only 15.5%. There has been almost no improvement in the level of additional awareness and use of folic acid supplementation for WWE since the relevant guidelines were established in China. Pregnant WWE with higher education levels, those with a planned pregnancy, or those who live in urban areas were more likely to know about and implement folic acid supplementation during periconception. Moreover, pregnant WWE with a planned pregnancy or those living in cities seemed to have a higher folic acid intake and started folic acid supplementation earlier before conception.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The extent of awareness and use of folic acid supplementation in pregnant WWE remains low in China. More efforts are needed to promote periconceptional folic acid supplementation for WWE, especially those with low education levels and those who live in rural areas. Planned pregnancy should be encouraged for WWE.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.
authors.forename: Nanya
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hao
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, West China Second University Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.
authors.forename: Yingying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.
authors.forename: Mengqian
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.
authors.forename: Han
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, 363 Hospital, Chengdu 610041, China.
authors.forename: Xu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Sichuan People's Hospital, Chengdu 610072, China.
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China. Electronic address: zhoudong66@yahoo.de.
authors.forename: Dong
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zhou
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D004363:Drug Utilization; D005260:Female; D005492:Folic Acid / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D058996:Quality Improvement; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D005492:Folic Acid
keywords: China; Epilepsy; Folic acid; Pregnancy