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. 2022 Jul;63(7):1822-1834.
doi: 10.1111/epi.17242. Epub 2022 Apr 11.

Prevalence of self-reported emotional, physical, and sexual abuse and association with fear of childbirth in pregnant women with epilepsy: The Norwegian Mother, Father, and Child Cohort Study

Johannes Vederhus  1   2 , Elisabeth Synnøve Nilsen Husebye  1   3 , Karine Eid  1   3 , Nils Erik Gilhus  1   3 , Marte Helene Bjørk  1   3
Affiliations

Prevalence of self-reported emotional, physical, and sexual abuse and association with fear of childbirth in pregnant women with epilepsy: The Norwegian Mother, Father, and Child Cohort Study

Johannes Vederhus et al. Epilepsia. 2022 Jul.

Abstract

Objective: This study was undertaken to examine the prevalence of self-reported experiences with abuse in pregnant women with epilepsy and the association between having experienced abuse and childbirth expectations, particularly the fear of childbirth.

Methods: We performed a cross-sectional study of women with and without epilepsy enrolled in the Norwegian Mother, Father, and Child Cohort Study 1999-2008. Data on epilepsy diagnosis; antiseizure medication (ASM) use; emotional, physical, and sexual abuse; and childbirth expectations were collected from questionnaires completed during gestational Weeks 17-19 and 30.

Results: Our study population included 295 women with ASM-treated epilepsy, 318 women with ASM-untreated epilepsy, and 93 949 women without epilepsy. A total of 115 women (47%) with ASM-treated and 132 women (57%) with ASM-untreated epilepsy reported any emotional, physical, or sexual abuse, compared to 25 100 women (32%) without epilepsy. The adjusted odds ratios (aORs) for having experienced any abuse were 1.8 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.4-2.3) and 1.8 (95% CI = 1.4-2.2) for ASM-treated and ASM-untreated epilepsy, respectively. A total of 29 women (11%) with ASM-treated and 34 women (11%) with ASM-untreated epilepsy reported having been raped, compared to 3088 women (4%) without epilepsy (aORs = 2.8 [95% CI = 1.8-4.1] and 2.9 [95% CI = 2.0-4.2], respectively). In nulliparous women with ASM-untreated epilepsy, having experienced abuse was associated with fear of childbirth; 22 women (31%) with abuse experiences reported fear of childbirth compared to five women (7%) with no experience of abuse (aOR = 5.4 [95% CI = 1.7-17.2]). This association was not seen in multiparous women or in women with ASM-treated epilepsy.

Significance: More women with epilepsy reported emotional, physical, and sexual abuse than women without epilepsy. Such experiences may be associated with childbirth expectations.

Keywords: MBRN; MoBa; anticonvulsants; antiseizure medication; violence.

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Conflict of interest statement

K.E. has received unrestricted research grants from Novartis. N.E.G. has received speaking and/or consultant honoraria from UCB, Ra Pharmaceuticals, Roche, Alexion, Argenx, and Immunovant. M.H.B. has received speaking and/or consultant honoraria from Novartis, Teva, Eisai, and Lilly, and project funding from Novartis unrelated to the present work. Neither of the other authors has any conflict of interest to disclose. We confirm that we have read the Journal's position on issues involved in ethical publication and affirm that this report is consistent with those guidelines.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Flowchart of case inclusion. ASM, antiseizure medication; MBRN, the Medical Birth Registry of Norway; MoBa, the Norwegian Mother, Father, and Child Cohort Study
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Association between having experienced abuse and fear of childbirth in women with and without epilepsy. Forest plot shows adjusted odds ratios (aORs) of the fear of childbirth in women with self‐reported experiences of abuse compared to women with no abuse experience. Nulliparous and multiparous women within each of the three study groups were examined separately. See the text for information on the covariates in the adjusted models. ASM, antiseizure medication; CI, confidence interval
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

  • Women With Epilepsy: Causes for Concern.
    Terman SW. Terman SW. Epilepsy Curr. 2022 Oct 28;23(1):11-13. doi: 10.1177/15357597221130871. eCollection 2023 Jan-Feb. Epilepsy Curr. 2022. PMID: 36923339 Free PMC article. No abstract available.

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