Intellectual and language functions in children of mothers with epilepsy.

Full Abstract

PURPOSE:
To compare the intellectual and language functions of children of mothers with epilepsy (CME) with that of controls matched for age and socioeconomic status.

METHODS:
Cases were CME, aged six years or more (n = 71), drawn from a prospective cohort in the Kerala Registry of Epilepsy and Pregnancy. Controls were 201 children of parents without epilepsy, matched for age and socioeconomic status. The outcome measures included Indian adaptation of Wechsler Intelligence Scale for children and MLT-a locally developed proficiency test for regional language. All relevant data were abstracted from the registry records.

RESULTS:
The Full Scale IQ and MLT scores were significantly lower for the cases (87.7 +/- 22.6 and 73.4 +/- 17.3) compared to controls (93.0 +/- 14.4 and 83.2 +/- 11.8). Compared to controls, CME scored poor on all subtests of MLT but their impairment was confined to only some of the subtests of IQ. Maternal education and maternal IQ significantly correlated with low IQ and MLT scores for CME whereas type of epilepsy, seizures during pregnancy or low birth weight did not have any significant association with these outcome measures. Polytherapy and higher dosage of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) were associated with significant impairment in outcome measures. Infants with low developmental quotient at one year of age continued to have low scores on outcome measures at six years.

CONCLUSIONS:
Low maternal IQ, maternal education, and antenatal AED exposure were associated with significant impairment of intellectual and language functions for CME at six years.

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Author information

Author/s: Thomas, Sanjeev V (SV); Sukumaran, Sajith (S); Lukose, Neetha (N); George, Annamma (A); Sarma, P S (PS);

Affiliation: Kerala Registry of Epilepsy and Pregnancy, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum, India. sanjeev.thomas(-atsign-)gmail.com

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Comparative Study; Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Journal: Epilepsia (Epilepsia), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2007-Dec; vol 48 (issue 12) : pp 2234-40

Dates: Created 2007/12/19; Completed 2008/01/25;

PMID: 17941847, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Adult
Age Factors
Anticonvulsants - adverse effects; therapeutic use
Child
Child of Impaired Parents
Developmental Disabilities - diagnosis; epidemiology
Drug Therapy, Combination
Educational Status
Epilepsy - epidemiology
Female

Female
Humans
India - epidemiology
Intelligence Tests - statistics & numerical data
Language Tests - statistics & numerical data
Mental Retardation - diagnosis; epidemiology
Pregnancy
Pregnancy Complications - epidemiology
Prospective Studies
Social Class

Associated Chemicals: Anticonvulsants (0)

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