Program for those with epilepsy able to detect symptoms of depression, suicidality
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Key takeaways:
- Researchers analyzed data from 59 individuals with epilepsy undergoing mental health evaluation.
- More than 70% of those in HOBSCOTCH program reported symptoms of depression.
ORLANDO — A home-based mental health program for individuals with epilepsy was effective in detecting symptoms of depression and suicidality, according to a poster.
“The unmet needs of mental health intervention in epilepsy, dealing with memory problems is what the program is about, but we also talk about quality of life,” Taylor Shade, BS, a researcher in the department of neurology at Emory University School of Medicine, told Healio during a presentation at the American Epilepsy Society annual meeting.
Image: Adobe Stock
Researchers sought to examine rates of depression, depression and suicidality-related interventions and the four-component HOBSCOTCH (Home-Based Self-management and Cognitive Training Changes Lives) behavioral program and its impact on depression scores.
Their study included 59 individuals from Emory University’s Comprehensive Epilepsy Center, whose demographic data and medical histories were taken at baseline, as well as a cohort of waitlisted controls. All participants answered the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), whose scores were measured at baseline and 3 months.
During each patient session, additional information was taken through the following interventions: problem-solving therapy (PST), brief suicide assessment for those thought to be at risk and other mental health resources as needed.
Analysis included 40 individuals whose complete data were available.
According to results, 70.4% of those in HOBSCOTCH group and 60.7% of those in the wait-listed group reported symptoms of depression. Additionally, PST therapeutic intervention was performed with 41.7% of the whole patient population, as their symptoms were deemed significant enough to impede progress during the memory intervention.
The brief suicide assessment was completed on 25% of study individuals, and 5.6% of enrollees were given mental health resources for self-treatment.
However, according to PHQ-9 scores, the interaction of treatment was not significant for the group or those experiencing depression.
The study findings highlight the importance of “offering mental health resources, offering structure for addressing quality of life day to day, or offering a suicide assessment for those who are at that level,” Shade told Healio.