7) Does your epilepsy prevent you from participating in any of the following as much as you would like to?
8) Has your health care provider ever discussed any of the following with you? Please select all that apply.
9) Do you experience side effects from your medication?
10) How often do you experience the following side effects?
11) When prescribed a seizure medication, how important are each of the following considerations to you?
12) While on an epilepsy treatment regimen, have you ever…?
Please note this survey is NOT
NATIONAL SURVEY RESULTS Survey Methods and Population:
National, online survey, conducted by Harris Interactive, a global market research firm
367 U.S. adults with epilepsy, who are being treated with one or more epilepsy medication
58% of respondents are currently taking one epilepsy medication; 42% are taking more than one
61% of those polled are female
83% are of "working age" (between 18 - 58)
Survey Highlights:
Medication and Side Effects
85% of respondents are satisfied with their current treatment regimen's ability to control their seizures. However, 46% experience medication side effects that can impair their ability to perform daily activities.
Of the 46% of respondents who experienced side effects:
The following side effects were experienced "often:" sleepiness (48%), fogginess or lack of clear headedness (35%) and weight gain (24%).
Side effects that impaired their ability to perform daily activities "a great deal" include sleepiness (35%), fogginess (33%), dizziness (25%), headache (22%), nausea (20%), double vision (20%), weight gain (19%), irritability (19%), and rash (6%).
57% said they cannot work as much as they would like and 55% can't drive as much as they would like.
There are several important factors adults with epilepsy consider in finding the right treatment for them. The three most important are:
Reducing the frequency of seizures (86%)
Experiencing few side effects (71%)
Getting back to a normal routine, such as exercise, work, etc. (69%)
Overall Health and Life Style
Almost six of every 10 respondents (58%) feel their "current health situation limits them from living the life they want to live."
About half (51%) were prevented from participating in at least one routine activity as much as they would like, including driving a car (37%), working (34%) and exercising or playing sports (25%).
According to the survey, overall quality of communication with the primary health care provider who treats their epilepsy was excellent (48%) or good (34%). However, less than half of respondents (47%) said their physicians addressed how epilepsy treatment may impact their current lifestyle.
Compliance
65% of all those polled reported forgetting to take medication, yet only 27% said their physicians addressed medication compliance strategies with them. (Medication compliance is a serious concern for people with epilepsy, as noncompliance with AED therapy is a leading cause of breakthrough seizures.)
About the Survey
This survey, commissioned by Eisai Inc., was conducted online by Harris Interactive within the U.S. between October 11 and October 26, 2004 among 367 U.S. adults (aged 18+) who have been diagnosed with epilepsy and are currently taking at least one epilepsy medication. Figures for age, sex, race, education and income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also applied to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online.
In theory, with probability samples of this size, one could say with 95 percent certainty that the results for the overall sample have a sampling error of +/- 6 percentage points. Statistical precision for the sub-sample of U.S. adults with epilepsy who take at least one medication and who experience side effects (174) is plus or minus 8 percentage points. This online sample was not a probability sample.
More information on The Changing Faces of Epilepsy can be found at www.ChangingFacesOfEpilepsy.com .
About Eisai Inc.
Eisai Inc. is a U.S. pharmaceutical subsidiary of Eisai Co., Ltd., a research-based human health care
company that discovers, develops and markets products in more than 30 countries. Established in 1995,
Eisai Inc. began marketing its first product in the United States in 1997 and has rapidly grown to become an integrated pharmaceutical business with sales of more than $1.7 billion in fiscal year 2003 (year ending March 31, 2004).
Eisai Inc. employs approximately 1,100 people at its headquarters in Teaneck, NJ, at its state-of-the-art pharmaceutical production and formulation research and development facility in Research Triangle Park, NC, and in the field. Between 1998 and 2003, Eisai Inc. moved up rapidly in the rankings (based on revenues) of U.S. pharmaceutical companies from No. 44 to No. 20.
About Harris Interactive
Harris Interactive Inc. (www.harrisinteractive.com ), the 15th largest and fastest-growing market research firm in the world, is a Rochester, N.Y.-based global research company that blends premier strategic consulting with innovative and efficient methods of investigation, analysis and application. Known for The Harris Poll® and for pioneering Internet-based research methods, Harris Interactive conducts proprietary and public research to help its clients achieve clear, material and enduring results.
Harris Interactive combines its intellectual capital, databases and technology to advance market leadership through U.S. offices and wholly owned subsidiaries: London-based HI Europe (www.hieurope.com ), Paris-based Novatris (www.novatris.com ), Tokyo-based Harris Interactive Japan, through newly acquired WirthlinWorldwide (www.wirthlinworldwide.com ), a Reston, Virginia-based research and consultancy firm ranked 25th largest in the world, and through an independent global network of affiliate market research companies. EOE M/F/D/V.
