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CONy 2020 | A holistic approach to treating epilepsy and comorbidities

William Curt LaFrance, MD, MPH, FAAN, FANPA, DFAPA, Brown University, Providence, RI, discusses common and clinically important neuropsychiatric aspects of epilepsy. In epilepsy patients, 30-40% have comorbid depression and a significant amount have anxiety. Both anxiety and depression have an impact on the outcomes of epilepsy treatment success. Therefore, in the clinic, a patient should be looked at and treated in a holistic manner. To treat epilepsy, there are more treatment options than pharmacotherapy and surgery, for example, lifestyle changes and psychotherapy. For epilepsy patients with depression or anxiety, psychotherapy could be beneficial. This interview took place during the Virtual World Congress on Controversies in Neurology (CONy) 2020.

Disclosures

Dr. LaFrance has served on the editorial boards of Epilepsia, Epilepsy & Behavior; Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry, and Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences; receives editor’s royalties from the publication of Gates and Rowan’s Nonepileptic Seizures, 3rd ed. (Cambridge University Press, 2010) and 4th ed. (2018); author’s royalties for Taking Control of Your Seizures: Workbook and Therapist Guide (Oxford University Press, 2015); has received research support from the Department of Defense (DoD W81XWH-17-0169), NIH (NINDS 5K23NS45902 [PI]), Providence VAMC, Center for Neurorestoration and Neurorehabilitation, Rhode Island Hospital, the American Epilepsy Society (AES), the Epilepsy Foundation (EF), Brown University and the Siravo Foundation; serves on the Epilepsy Foundation New England Professional Advisory Board, the Board of the Functional Neurological Disorder Society, and on the Council of the American Neuropsychiatric Association; has received honoraria for the American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting Annual Course; has served as a clinic development consultant at University of Colorado Denver, Cleveland Clinic, Spectrum Health, Emory University, and Oregon Health Sciences University; and has provided medico-legal expert testimony.