A study of Knowledge, Attitude, Practice towards Epilepsy among relative of epileptic patients in Uttar Pradesh State, India

Abstract

People with epilepsy are suffering from a lot of negative impacts on their lives; due to misunderstanding of the disease and from the associated stigma. To assess the knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and practices of relative of epileptic patients towards epilepsy. A cross-sectional survey has recruited a randomly selected sample of population of Uttar Pradesh. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data from 487 participants. The questionnaire had four main parts: personal data, knowledge, attitude and practice. Most of the respondents knew the disease, and had witnessed an attack. One third mentioned a brain lesion as the underlying cause of epilepsy. Most of the respondents mentioned loss of consciousness as the major symptom. More than two thirds mentioned that it is not contagious. Most of the respondents claimed that it can be controlled, and two thirds preferred medical treatment. The study revealed that half of the respondents had shown favourable attitudes and practice. The study revealed that the level of knowledge, attitude, and practice towards epilepsy needs community educational programmes to fill the gaps, and minimize the stigma.