Suicides constitute a serious public health issue worldwide. The number of suicide victims has been increasing over the years. Susceptibility to suicidal behaviour depends on the interaction of a number of factors. The reasons for taking a decision on committing suicide may objectively seem prosaic, and yet, according to the victim, cannot be resolved in any other way. Very often, it is the disease which is a risk factor for suicide. Suicidal thoughts, suicidal behaviours and suicide attempts as well as committed suicides occur far more frequently in epileptic patients than in the general population. There are many reasons for suicides committed by patients suffering from epilepsy. This paper presents basic data on epidemiology and risk factors of suicide attempts among patients with epilepsy. Risk factors in this group of patients include, inter alia, prior suicide attempts, co-morbidity of epilepsy with depression and other mental disorders, early onset (before 18 years of age), type and frequency of epileptic seizures and the use of anti-epileptic drugs, particularly in polytherapy.
Part of the book: Epileptology
The aim of this study was designed to examine the rate of occurrence of antiepileptic drug overdose in 2002 and 2012 in Cracow, Poland, and analyze the demographics and clinical features of the patients Antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) intoxication. A retrospective study included all the patients admitted in to the Toxicology Units in Cracow for AED intoxications in 2002 and in 2012. Patients were identified of discharge diagnoses (ICD-10). AED intoxication were 5.40% of the total admissions. Mean age of the patients was 35.88 ± 12.54 years. The female-to-male ratio was 1:1.7. The most frequent AED was carbamazepine (n = 140), followed by valproate (n = 31). The most frequent motivation was intentional intoxication (n = 166, 94.86%). Ethanol was coingested by 51 patients (29.14%). Most of the patients ingested other drugs (32%). Antiepileptic drugs intoxication accounted for only of 7.13% of all cases admitted to the abovementioned toxicology units in 2002 and 2012 in Cracow. Our studies show that most of the AED poisoning cases in those years were caused by drugs belonging to the old generation antiepileptic drugs, including carbamazepine and valproic acid. The majority of the intoxication cases was related to suicidal poisoning and commonest identified reason of self-intoxication were issues with self including attention-seeking behavior.
Part of the book: Epileptology
Pancreatic cancer is the fourth most common cancer causing death in the world. The prognosis of patients with pancreatic cancer is relatively low, which may be reflected in the patients’ lack of acceptance of the illness and passive attitudes towards the illness. The aim of the study was to evaluate the strategy of coping with pain and its control, acceptance of the illness and adjustment to life with cancer in patients suffering from pancreatic cancer. Forty-six patients with pancreatic cancer were included in the study. They were treated as outpatients at the Center of Oncology at Maria Skłodowska-Curie’s Institute in Warsaw between 2017 and 2018. The questionnaire included four psychometric tests: BPCQ, CSQ, AIS and MiniMAC. In the BPCQ test the highest average test result was obtained by “internal factors” (M = 16.85; SD = 5.64). The most frequently chosen strategies for coping with pain are praying/hoping (M = 22.33; SD = 7.85). The average illness acceptance score was 23.13 (SD = 7.84). The most common methods of psychological adjustment to cancer for the studied group are the strategies of positive re-evaluation (M = 20.07, SD = 3.67). Patients with pancreatic cancer have a low level of acceptance of their illness.
Part of the book: Health-Related Quality of Life