Preparing and Caring for Patients with Epilepsy for a Sleep Study

Abstract

Nursing care for patients with epilepsy is important because seizure symptoms can spontaneously develop anytime. Some cases with epilepsy may also have neurological dysfunctions, which are significant risks for falls, and affect patients’ cooperation during the procedure. Thus, patient preparation before performing a sleep study with polysomnography is necessary, including medical reviewing for both sleep problems and epilepsy, planning to install sleep testing equipment that is appropriate for the patient’s condition, and assessing the risk of severe seizures during the examination.When the patient is examined, the sleep testing nurse should assess the patient’s cooperation and risks for seizure and falls and then use preventive plans to reduce such risks. During the sleep study, if abnormalities in the patient’s electroencephalography or behavior are presented during sleep, the data should be recorded for review and analysis with the sleep specialist who interprets the results later. If the patient has a generalized tonic-clonic seizure, the sleep nurse should turn a patient gently onto one side, loosen any tight clothing, check the vital signs, and urgently call an emergency medical service team to manage care. When the sleep test is complete, the nurse should advise about self-care and make the next appointment date for a patient and coordinate with the sleep physician for the analysis of the sleep test.
Keywords: Antiepileptics, Epilepsy, Polysomnography, Sleep test