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Review
. 2018 Jun;14(4):717-724.
doi: 10.5114/aoms.2016.60377. Epub 2016 Jun 7.

Descriptive epidemiology: prevalence, incidence, sociodemographic factors, socioeconomic domains, and quality of life of epilepsy: an update and systematic review

Seyed Shahabeddin Sadr  1 , Javad Javanbakht  1   2 , Abbas Norouzi Javidan  2 , Majid Ghaffarpour  3 , Safoura Khamse  1 , Zeinab Naghshband  1
Affiliations
Review

Descriptive epidemiology: prevalence, incidence, sociodemographic factors, socioeconomic domains, and quality of life of epilepsy: an update and systematic review

Seyed Shahabeddin Sadr et al. Arch Med Sci. 2018 Jun.

Abstract

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to investigate the contributions of quality of life (QOL), sociodemographic factors (age, sex, etc.), residential areas, general attitudes toward epilepsy, socioeconomic domains, prevalence and incidence in epileptic patients from Iran.

Material and methods: A systematic literature search was conducted, including database searches in PubMed, Medline, Embase, ScienceDirect, Scopus, ISC, Health, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library Database of relevant articles, personal files and systematic reviews to identify studies examining risk factors in epilepsy.

Results: This review article shows that certain socio-demographic and socio-economic factors, geographic variation in epidemiologic patterns of epilepsy as well as clinical factors may be crucial in determining QOL in epilepsy patients and provides further evidence supporting the validity of the scale in QOL based on consideration of different target groups in different areas.

Conclusions: Prevalence of epilepsy appears to be correlated with socioeconomic status in the lower socioeconomic groups. Also demographic characteristics, socio-economic factors and clinical presentation are linked to different QOL of these patients among nations. The educational program has a beneficial effect on self-management behaviors in patients with epilepsy. More work needs to be done to improve tools that help to evaluate efficiently the health-related quality of life of people with epilepsy.

Keywords: epilepsy; prevalence; quality of life; sociodemographic factors; socioeconomic status.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Graphic abstract: Schematic image shows the different types of brain changes (A–D) in epilepsy as a neurological disorder caused by unusual nerve cell activity in the brain
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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