Neurological Disorders

Epilepsy Treatment Outcome, Adherence to Anti-seizure Medications and Predicting Factors at the Chronic Care Facility in Jimma University Medical Center, Jimma, Southwest Ethiopia: Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Firafan Shuma*, Behailu Terefe and Tamirat Tekassa

The aim of this study was to assess epilepsy treatment outcome, adherence to Anti-seizure medication (ASM), and its predictors among epileptic patients on follow-up at the chronic care unit of Jimma University Medical Center with a total of 168 epileptic patients enrolled in the study. Data was collected by data collectors using data abstraction formats, then entered and analyzed using SPSS version 26.0. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the association between dependent and independent variable. In this study, 132(78.6%) patients were adherent to their ASMs. Seizure recurrence was identified in 120(71.4%) patients. Rural residence (AOR=6.42, 95% CI: 1.32, 31.28, P=0.02), chronic ASM therapy for above five years (AOR=20.86, 95% CI: 2.66, 163.77, P=0.00), and complaint of ASM-associated undesirable effect (AOR=13.51, 95% CI: 2.72, 67.26, P=0.00) significantly increased the probability of seizure recurrence. On the other hand, the presence of seizure triggering factors (AOR=0.12, 95% CI: 0.02, 0.64, P=0.01) decreased the probability of seizure recurrence by 88%.