Depression and genetic causal attribution of epilepsy in multiplex epilepsy families.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Rapid advances in genetic research and increased use of genetic testing have increased the emphasis on genetic causes of epilepsy in patient encounters. Research in other disorders suggests that genetic causal attributions can influence patients' psychological responses and coping strategies, but little is known about how epilepsy patients and their relatives will respond to genetic attributions of epilepsy. We investigated the possibility that among members of families containing multiple individuals with epilepsy, depression, the most frequent psychiatric comorbidity in the epilepsies, might be related to the perception that epilepsy has a genetic cause.

Methods

A self-administered survey was completed by 417 individuals in 104 families averaging 4 individuals w

SUBMITTER: Sorge ST 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5056147 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature