The Association between Stigma and Quality of Life among School Age and Adolescents with Epilepsy: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract Background: Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological diseases in children and adults and has a significant burden on physical and mental health. It is a condition that is particularly prone to stigma due to the unpredictable and uncontrollable nature of seizures, which often triggered fear and anxiety in the people who witness them. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was conducted on children with epilepsy at the Neuroscience Center in Al-Diwaniyah Province. The study aimed to find the association between stigma and quality of life among school age and adolescent epilepsy. Purposive sample included 106 parents of children (school age and adolescents) with epilepsy. Results: A total of 106 participants completed the QoL scale and (stigma assessment) questionnaire. The study found that the highest percentage (48%) of children ages were 11–15 years, and more than half of the sample were males, and 64% of the sample was educational level in primary school, and the result of the study revealed 50.9% had a moderate level of quality of life, but 60.4% had a high level of stigma. Conclusion: This study found the overall assessment of the quality of life for children with epilepsy was at a moderate level and a high level of stigma was there among children with epilepsy, and there is a significant relationship ( P < 0.05) between social stigma and quality of life for children with epilepsy.