Psychopathology and life quality in children with epilepsy and psychopathology in their parents

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Epilepsy is one of the most common chronic neurological disorders. It is known that epileptic children have more psychiatric diseases than normal population and children with other chronic diseases. The present study was aimed to identify the psychopathology of children with epilepsy, their life quality and the psychopathology of their parents. METHODS: 48 children with epilepsy, 48 children for control group and their parents were included in this study. We used Ankara Development Screening Inventory (ADSI), Brief Infant Toddler Social Emotional Assessment (BITSEA), Early Childhood Inventory-Parent Scale (ECI-4), Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL) and Symptoms Checklist-90 (SCL-90) for assessments. RESULTS: There was no difference between the epilepsy and the control groups in BITSEA scores for 1-3 years. In the ECI-4 assessment for 4-6 years, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), general anxiety disorder (GAD), social phobia (SP), posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), dysthymic disorders and elimination disorder (ED) were found higher in the children with epilepsy. In the mothers of the children with epilepsy, psychiatric symptoms were found higher than the controls. There was no difference in quality of life scores between the children with epilepsy and the control groups. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: In the present study, no psychopathology was detected in the children with epilepsy 1-3 years of age, while frequency of psychopathology was increased in those 4-6 years of age. Also, it was found that the frequency of psychiatric symptoms was increased in the mothers of the children with epilepsy.