Effect of motivational interviewing on quality of life in patients with epilepsy

•Motivational interviewing caused a significant increase in all QOL subscales.•Motivational interviewing changed behavior and lifestyle.•There was no significant difference in sexual satisfaction of both groups after intervention.•QOL scores in the control group showed a significant drop after research intervention.•Motivational interviewing increased energy of patients with epilepsy more than other subscales.

ObjectiveIn this study, the effect of motivational interviewing on quality of life was evaluated in patients with epilepsy.MethodsFifty-six patients with epilepsy in a clinical trial were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. Motivational interviewing during 5 sessions was applied for the intervention group, and the control group received health-care services. Quality-of-life questionnaire in epilepsy (QOLIE-89) was applied as pre- and posttest for both groups. Before and two months after intervention, both groups were assessed. Data were analyzed by independent t-test, Chi-square test, and paired t-test.ResultsThe data analysis showed that mean score of the QOLIE-89 was 38.94 ± 8.55 and 70.90 ± 7.99 in the intervention group before and after the intervention, respectfully, and 44.59 ± 12.27 and 36.52 ± 7.16 in the control group sequentially. The intervention group showed a significant score increase in their quality of life (p < 0.001), whereas the control group had a score decrease (p < 0.001).ConclusionMotivational interviewing approach could be used as an effective intervention method for improving patients' quality of life.