Physical activity in adults with epilepsy: clinical aspects and relationship with cognition and quality of life

Abstract

There are several factors associated with lower participation in regular physical activity (PA) in adult patients with epilepsy (PWEs). Objective: To assess the relationship between the regular practice of PA with clinical and cognitive variables and quality of life (QoL) in PWEs. Methods: Habitual Physical Activity Questionnaire (HPAQ) was related to clinical variables, scores on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), on the Brief Cognitive Battery-Edu (BCB-Edu), on the Satisfaction Scale for Physical Activity (SSPA), and on the Quality of Life in Epilepsy Inventory (QOLIE)-31 in 60 PWEs, with a significance level of p<0.05. Results: The PWEs had a mean age of 42.4±13.6 years, 50% of whom were female. Longer length of epilepsy correlated with lower PA in leisure time (Pearson correlation [r]= -0.276; p-value [p]=0.036). The occupational physical activity scores of the HPAQ correlated positively with perception (r=0.300; p=0.021), memory (r=0.381; p=0.003), semantic verbal fluency test (SVF) (r=0.427; p=0.001), and with the total score in the MMSE (r=0.327; p=0.012). The total HPAQ score correlated with the SVF (r=0.336; p=0.009) and with the MMSE (r=0.254; p=0.049). There was no correlation among the QOLIE–31, the HPAQ, and the SSPA. Conclusions: Longer duration of epilepsy was associated with the lower practice of PA. Physical activity was associated with better performance in aspects of cognition. There was no relationship between QoL and practice and satisfaction with PA, suggesting different psychosocial aspects involved.

Effects of exercise on sleep in patients with epilepsy: A systematic review

“…Exercise benefits overall health and can be protective in multiple health conditions, including cardiovascular disease [1] , [2] , diabetes [3] , [4] , [5] , and mental health [6] , [7] , [8] . Unfortunately, people with epilepsy engage in less physical activity than the general population [9] , [10] , [11] , with barriers including lack of time, transportation issues, concerns about accidents, injuries, and fear of triggering seizures [12] , [13] . Contributing to this sedentary lifestyle is a lack of knowledge and education about the real risks and benefits of exercise for people with epilepsy, and the historical practice of advising people with epilepsy to refrain from exercising.…”