Fatigue and its Related Factors in Patients with Epilepsy and Psychogenic Non-epileptic Seizure: a Cross-Sectional Study

The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of fatigue and its related factors in patients with epilepsy and psychogenic non-epileptic seizures. From January 2017 to January 2018, a descriptive cross-sectional research study was conducted among adult (aged over 18) patients with epilepsy in the neurology clinic of a university-affiliated hospital in Tehran, Iran. The Fatigue Severity Scale was used to determine the prevalence of fatigue, and the relationships between fatigue, demographic characteristics, and clinical properties were evaluated. During the study period, 100 patients were included, comprising 70 (70%) patients diagnosed with epileptic seizures and 30 (30%) with psychogenic non-epileptic seizures. Fatigue affected 24 patients (34%) out of 70 individuals with epileptic seizures and six patients (20%) out of 30 patients with psychogenic non-epileptic seizures. There was no statistically significant relationship between the incidence of fatigue and age, gender, level of education, occupation, age at the onset of the seizures, duration of the disease, and time since the last seizure. However, fatigue was significantly correlated with the demographic variable of being unmarried (p = 0.007). Furthermore, there was a significant relationship between fatigue and taking carbamazepine and levetiracetam (p = 0.001). Our study revealed that fatigue was a prevalent problem (30%) in patients with epilepsy and psychogenic non-epileptic seizures. Moreover, fatigue was correlated with marital status and the consumption of carbamazepine and levetiracetam.