Quality of life in paediatrics with intractable epilepsy in a large paediatric university hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Context: Epilepsy is said to be intractable when two or more trials of anticonvulsants fail to control the seizures. Literature suggests that intractable epilepsy carries a higher morbidity than controlled epilepsy in children and their caregivers.

Aims: The aim of this study is to assess the quality of life (QOL) in children with intractable epilepsy (IE) in KASCH, a tertiary care hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Settings And Design: This is a cross-sectional study utilizing a self-administered questionnaire filled by caregivers of epileptic patients visiting the outpatient neurology clinics.

Methods And Materials: The quality of life in childhood epilepsy (QOLCE-55) scale examined four domains of life: cognitive, emotional, social, and physical. The sample consisted of 59 parents whose children aged 4-14 of either sex.

Statistical Analysis Used: The collected data were analyzed by Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22.

Results: The mean age of children was 8.9 (SD = 2.9). The mean QOL was 52.8 (SD = 12.9), which reflected a poor QOL. Age was not related to the QOL. Gender was significantly associated with the total and social scores, ( = 0.04) ( = 0.001), respectively. Out of all comorbidities, global developmental delay (GDD) and encephalopathy were significantly associated with the QOL ( < 0.05).

Conclusions: Intractable epilepsy impacted all functioning domains of life rendering a poor QOL. Males have reported better QOL and social functioning compared to females. Children with GDD and encephalopathy showed lower well-being.