Schoolchildren with Epilepsy: Epidemiological and Longitudinal Studies on Questionnaire for Teachers at Intervals of 12 Years

Abstract

Many kinds of studies were performed about liferelating factors in children with epilepsy through questionnaires to parents, teachers and doctors. The purpose of this study was to find the differences between the school lives of children with epilepsy since 12 years ago up to the present by means of a teacher&s point of view by questionnaires. A questionnaire was sent to 1,335 teachers in 1990; (1,040 teachers in 1978) in all elementary and junior high schools, and in all special municipal schools in Yokohama. Nine hundred and four evaluable answers(68%) were obtained in 1990; (751 answers (72%) in 1978). Small values were the result of the previous study in 1978. As to the impression of epilepsy, most teachers commented as dangerous; 35% (31%), anxiety; 22%(19%), heredity; 17% (23%).) There were teachers who had an opinion on epilepsy as insanity; 4% (9%) and incurable disease; 4% (6%), though they were not many. The answer to the question; whether epileptic schoolchildren have or do not have a specific form of character (so-called epileptic characteropathy); positive answers decreased to 35% from 53%. A higher proportion of teachers from the last time (59% from 37%) were informed about the children's illness by their families. But a lower proportion (18% from 9%) of teachers had a poor contact with doctors. Only 38% (13%) of teachers allowed to join in group tours, and 39% of teachers permitted it with some reservations. The mean of the allowance rate of joining to sports in this study was significantly higher in the allowance of 14% more than in the previous study. Many requests were presented; 467 subjects from 33% of teachers in 1990 (216 subjects from 24% of teachers in 1978). The most emphasized item (166 from 75) was the alarming failure of communications which could exist between attending doctors, school medical officers and teachers. © 1992, JAPAN EPILEPSY SOCIETY. All rights reserved.