Effect of cognitive behavioral intervention on anxiety, depression, and quality of life in patients with epilepsy

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effect of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on quality of life, anxiety, and depression in patients with epilepsy. Methods: Each study subject was randomly assigned to a CBT (n=46) or control (n=49) group (1:1 ratio), and the first group underwent an 8-week CBT treatment. Anxiety, depression, and quality of life (QOLIE-31) were assessed at both baseline and endpoint using the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), Hamilton Depression Scale (HDMA) and quality of life in Epilepsy-31 (QOLIE-31) scales. The statistical analyses included between-and within-group comparisons of the effects of CBT on these measures and associations with demographic and clinical variables. Results: No differences were found between variables at baseline (P>0.05). The repeated-measures analyses found that CBT group had greater improvement in depression score compared to the control group (P