Background: This study explored antiepileptic drug use, frequency of seizures, and the effect of psychotropic drugs with the potential to lower the seizure threshold in persons diagnosed with epilepsy and intellectual disability. Methods: Data for this study were drawn from Wave 3 of the Intellectual Disability Supplement to the Irish Longitudinal…

Background: We now have sufficient evidence demonstrating inequalities in specific avoidable causes of death for adults with intellectual disability compared to their peers without intellectual disability. Apart from COVID-19, the largest differentials that disadvantage people with intellectual disability are in relation to pneumonia, aspiration…

The literature from inception to 2020 on the prevalence of epilepsy in autistic individuals was systematically reviewed and further explored by subgroup analyses and meta-regression models. This systematic review is registered with PROSPERO (CRD42020179725). A total of 66 studies from 53 articles were included. The updated pooled prevalence of…

Although epilepsy commonly presents with autism in children, it is currently unknown whether established estimates represent the prevalence and incidence of epilepsy in autistic adults. Our objective was to use population-level Medicaid data to determine prevalence, incidence, and antiepileptic drug use associated with epilepsy in a unique…

Background: Reliable and valid screening instruments for depression and anxiety are needed for adults with intellectual disabilities. Methods: Internal consistency (n = 198), inter-rater reliability (n = 41), test-retest reliability (n = 37) and criterion validity (n = 43) were studied in adults aged between 18 and 49 years. Internal consistency…

Background: As both epilepsy and challenging behaviour are highly prevalent in adults with intellectual disability (ID) it is important to explore any potential relationships between the two to inform patient care. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between epilepsy factors and challenging behaviour in adults with ID.…

Background: Epilepsy and challenging behaviour are both highly prevalent in the intellectual disability (ID) population and it is thus crucial to understand any possible associations between the two. Method: PsycINFO, MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL and Web of Science were searched for quantitative data about epilepsy and any forms of challenging…

A nationwide survey of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) was conducted with the aim of exploring outcomes in adolescence and adulthood. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the representativeness of the study population and to describe the study population. In total, 1,734 parents and 933 individuals with ASD returned…

Background: In the UK, general practitioners/family physicians receive pay for performance on management of long-term conditions, according to best-practice indicators. Method: Management of long-term conditions was compared between 721 adults with intellectual disabilities and the general population (n = 764,672). Prevalence of long-term…

Background: In the UK, people with intellectual disabilities who exhibit aggressive behaviour often receive community-based specialist health services from a community learning disability team (CLDT). Our aim was to estimate costs associated with this provision and to identify predictors of higher costs. Method: Costs were estimated for 60 adults…

Background: Falls and fall-related injuries are a problem for many adults with intellectual disability. Most previous studies have collected falls data retrospectively, using organisational incident reports. We developed tools to specifically collect fall-related data and potential fall risk data. This paper reports on the development of these…

The goal of this study was to systematically examine group differences among those with intellectual disabilities (ID) and comorbid Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and epilepsy in an adult population through a detailed exploration of the characteristics that these disorders present in the areas of psychopathology, behavior problems, and impaired…