This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.
Abstract
Objective Using electronic diaries as part of a randomized controlled trial of stress reduction for epilepsy, we evaluated factors associated with successful seizure self-prediction.
Methods Adults with medication-resistant focal epilepsy were recruited from 3 centers and randomized to treatment with progressive muscle relaxation or control focused attention. An 8-week baseline was followed by 12 weeks of double-blind treatment. Twice daily, participants rated the likelihood of a seizure in the next 24 hours on a 5-point scale from very unlikely to almost certain, along with mood, premonitory symptoms, stress ratings, and seizure counts. We analyzed the association of mood, premonitory symptoms, stress, and circadian influences on seizure self-prediction.
Results Sixty-four participants completed the trial (3,126 seizures). Diary entry adherence was >82%. Participant self-prediction was associated with seizure occurrence at 6, 12, and 24 hours (p < 0.0001). Odds ratio (OR) of seizure prediction increased systematically with participants’ prediction of seizure likelihood (p < 0.0001, all levels of prediction and all time intervals). For the 12-hour prediction window, median specificity for seizure prediction was 0.94 and negative predictive value 0.94; median sensitivity was 0.10 and positive predictive value 0.13. A subset of 13 participants (20% of sample) met criteria for good predictors (median OR for seizure prediction 5.25). Mood, stress, premonitory symptoms, seizure time, and randomized group were not associated with seizure occurrence.
Conclusion In this prospective study, participants’ prediction of a high probability of seizure was significantly associated with subsequent seizure occurrence within 24 hours. Future studies should focus on understanding factors that drive self-prediction.
Clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT01444183.
Glossary
- AED=
- antiepileptic drug;
- CI=
- confidence interval;
- EFA=
- exploratory factor analysis;
- EMU=
- epilepsy monitoring unit;
- NPV=
- negative predictive value;
- OR=
- odds ratio;
- PMR=
- progressive muscle relaxation;
- PPV=
- positive predictive value;
- RCT=
- randomized controlled trial
Footnotes
Go to Neurology.org/N for full disclosures. Funding information and disclosures deemed relevant by the authors, if any, are provided at the end of the article.
Patient Page e2078
CME Course: NPub.org/cmelist
- Received July 21, 2018.
- Accepted in final form May 30, 2019.
- © 2019 American Academy of Neurology
AAN Members
We have changed the login procedure to improve access between AAN.com and the Neurology journals. If you are experiencing issues, please log out of AAN.com and clear history and cookies. (For instructions by browser, please click the instruction pages below). After clearing, choose preferred Journal and select login for AAN Members. You will be redirected to a login page where you can log in with your AAN ID number and password. When you are returned to the Journal, your name should appear at the top right of the page.
AAN Non-Member Subscribers
Purchase access
Disputes & Debates: Rapid online correspondence
REQUIREMENTS
If you are uploading a letter concerning an article:
You must have updated your disclosures within six months: http://submit.neurology.org
Your co-authors must send a completed Publishing Agreement Form to Neurology Staff (not necessary for the lead/corresponding author as the form below will suffice) before you upload your comment.
If you are responding to a comment that was written about an article you originally authored:
You (and co-authors) do not need to fill out forms or check disclosures as author forms are still valid
and apply to letter.
Submission specifications:
- Submissions must be < 200 words with < 5 references. Reference 1 must be the article on which you are commenting.
- Submissions should not have more than 5 authors. (Exception: original author replies can include all original authors of the article)
- Submit only on articles published within 6 months of issue date.
- Do not be redundant. Read any comments already posted on the article prior to submission.
- Submitted comments are subject to editing and editor review prior to posting.