Auditory and Visual P300 Responses in Early Cognitive Assessment of Children and Adolescents with Epilepsy

The event-related potential P300 has been suggested to be valuable in the assessment of cognitive dysfunctions. Not a great deal of neurophysiological assessment has been performed at early stages in patients with epilepsy involving visual and auditory P300 measures.

This study aimed to assess the cognitive status in patients with epilepsy earlier by visual and auditory P300 and to find their correlation with various risk factors.

P300 was recorded in 60 children with epilepsy in the age-group of 5-18 years and 60 age- and sex-matched controls by a rare-frequent (oddball) paradigm. Mean auditory and visual P300 latencies and amplitudes were compared among patients with epilepsy and controls and among patients with generalized and focal epilepsy by unpaired t-test. Pearson's correlation coefficient test was computed for studying the correlation between risk factors and P300 responses. A value of P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Statistically significant delay in P300 latencies and reduction in amplitudes (both visual and auditory) was found in patients with epilepsy as compared to controls and also among patients with generalized and focal epilepsy. In generalized epilepsy, both visual and auditory P300 revealed significant delay, whereas only auditory P300 delay was found in focal form. No significant correlation was obtained with risk factors. No significant difference was found in P300 responses among patients with and without antiepileptic treatment.

Visual and auditory P300 latencies have an important role in the evaluation of early cognitive dysfunctions in children with epilepsy. P300 potentials are not influenced by antiepileptic treatment, whereas the type of epilepsy alters them.