Psychological profile of adults with tuberous sclerosis complex

The Symptom Checklist-90-Revised, a standardized self-report measure of psychological symptoms, was administered to 42 adults with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC). Approximately 45% reported high overall psychological distress, most commonly involving interpersonal sensitivity, psychoticism, depression, and obsessive-compulsive symptoms. Symptoms were related to number of organ systems affected by TSC and, in some cases, to seizure history, but not to genotype, IQ, education, severity of epilepsy, or use of anticonvulsant or psychiatric medication.