Knowledge, attitudes, and practice toward epilepsy (KAPE): a survey of Chinese and Vietnamese adults in the United States

Abstract

We conducted, in four languages, the first national cross-sectional survey of the knowledge, attitudes, and practice with respect to epilepsy of Chinese- and Vietnamese-American adults. We used a convenience sampling method to recruit 2831 adults in seven states. Eighty-four percent had heard or read of epilepsy and 58% had seen a seizure, whereas only 34% knew someone with epilepsy. Forty-two percent would object to their children marrying a person with epilepsy, and 43% would not knowingly hire someone with epilepsy. We examined bivariate associations for questions of knowledge, attitudes, and practice with age, gender, ethnicity, nativity, language, and education. chi(2) analyses showed differences in knowledge of and attitudes toward epilepsy by age group, gender, ethnicity, and education. Although misconceptions and negative views about epilepsy are held by Chinese and Vietnamese populations living in the United States, our results show noteworthy differences in attitudes and practice in relation to previous studies in Asian countries.