Affective Temperaments (AT) in epilepsy is waiting for a clear understanding as antecedents of mood disorders. Recent studies suggest that perception of stigma (PS) correlates with high anxiety and depression scores in epilepsy patients.

In this study we investigated if there is association between AT, PS and depression in epilepsy.

Consequent 71 outpatients (40 women 31 men) with epilepsy were included in the study and examined using the Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris and San Diego-Autoquestionnaire version (TEMPS-A), Epilepsy Stigma Scale, SCID-I for DSM IV for the diagnosis of depression.

Depressive temperament (DT) scores were positively correlated with PS scores (r:0,247, p< 0.05) in whole group. PS scores were significantly higher in epileptics with MDD group (n:14) than epileptics without MDD(n:57) (t -3.052, p< 0.05). than the patients were divided into groups as patients with DT (n:10), patients with MDD (n: 9) and patients with MDD and DT (n: 5). In One Way ANOVA analysis there was difference between groups. By Tukey HSD the Perception of Stigma was not different between DT and MDD grup but DT+MDD group was significantly higher than DT group.

Recent studies suggest that a crucial part of inherited factors of depression is mediated by ATs and in some studies DT is founded to be related with recurrent depressive disorder. This study suggest that there may be an association between PS, DT and MDD alone but coexistence of MDD and DT is a higher risk for higher levels of stigma perception.