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Behavioral problems in children with newly diagnosed idiopathic or cryptogenic epilepsy attending normal schools are
Kim J Oostrom1, Anneke Schouten, Cas L J J Kruitwagen
1Division of Neuropsychology, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, University Medical Centre, Utrecht, The Netherlands. K.Oostrom@WKZ.AZU.nl
Insights
Behavioral problems are common in children with epilepsy but not persistent, with low agreement between parent and teacher perceptions. Early diagnosis and adaptation are key factors in managing these issues.
Area of Science:
- Child neurology
- Developmental psychology
- Pediatric behavioral health
Background:
- Epilepsy in children can impact behavior.
- Understanding behavioral issues is crucial for early intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess parent and teacher perceptions of behavioral problems in children with newly diagnosed epilepsy.
- To compare behavioral issues in children with epilepsy to healthy peers.
Main Methods:
- Utilized Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and Teacher's Report Form (TRF) for quantifying behavioral problems.
- Collected data at diagnosis, 3 months, and 12 months post-diagnosis.
- Analyzed associations with demographic, educational, and prior adversity variables.
Main Results:
- Children with cryptogenic epilepsy showed more behavioral problems than healthy controls.
- Family issues and prior behavioral/learning problems correlated with increased behavioral issues.
- No adverse effects of antiepileptic drug (AED) treatment were observed.
- Clinically relevant behavioral problems were present in 25% (parents) and 22% (teachers) but varied among children.
- Low agreement between parents and teachers on the presence of behavioral problems.
Conclusions:
- Behavioral problems are frequent in children with epilepsy but tend to be transient.
- Parent-teacher agreement on behavioral issues is notably low.
- Behavioral problems are apparent even in the early stages of childhood epilepsy.
Purpose:
To investigate relevant adults' perceptions of behavioral problems in 66 children with newly diagnosed "epilepsy only" and in 63 healthy gender-matched classmates.
Methods:
Parents' and teachers' perceptions of the children's behavioral problems were quantified by using the Total Problem score of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and the Teacher's Report Form (TRF), after correction for epilepsy-related item ambiguity. Questionnaires were filled out immediately after diagnosis and 3 and 12 months later. Relations with demographic and educational variables, school attitudes, and interview-derived prior adversities were analyzed.
Results:
As a group, children with cryptogenic rather than those with idiopathic epilepsy have more behavioral problems than do healthy classmates. Family troubles and long-standing behavioral and learning problems are associated with more behavioral problems. The child's adaptation to the adversity of epilepsy onset is important. No adverse effect of antiepileptic drug (AED) treatment was found. Although the percentages of patients with clinically relevant (mean of controls + 2 SD) behavioral problems are consistently 25% (parents) and 22% (teachers), at each assessment, different children contribute to these percentages. In not a single child did parents and teachers agree on the presence of clinically relevant behavioral problems.
Conclusions:
(a) Behavioral problems are common in "epilepsy only," but are not persistent. (b) Agreement between parent's and teacher's perceptions of behavior is low. (c) Behavioral problems are perceived to occur already in the earliest stage of the disease.