Intensive reminders and 'implementation intention' interventions appear promising in enhancing adherence to antiepileptic mediations, however we need more reliable evidence on their efficacy from carefully designed randomised controlled trials before a firm conclusion can be reached.
Sepulveda Epilepsy Education: the efficacy of a psychoeducational treatment program in treating medical and psychosocial aspects of epilepsy.
The present study evaluated the efficacy of the Sepulveda Epilepsy Education program (SEE), using a controlled outcome design. SEE is a 2-day psychoeducational treatment program designed to provide medical education and psychosocial therapy. Thirty-eight outpatients, matched according to seizure type and frequency, were randomly assigned to treatment (n = 20) or waiting-list control (n = 18) groups. The major outcome measures used were a 50-item true-false test specifically designed to evaluate the SEE program, the Washington Psychosocial Seizure Inventory, the Beck Depression Inventory, Lubin's Depression Adjective Checklist, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Acceptance of Disability Scale, and Sherer's Self-Efficacy Scale. Significant differences between the two groups were found on the three major subscales of the 50-item true-false test. The treatment group demonstrated a significant increase in overall understanding of epilepsy, a significant decrease in fear of seizures, and a significant decrease in hazardous medical self-management practices. In addition, an objective measure of blood levels of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) showed the treatment group to have a significant increase in medication compliance.