The program was shown to be effective in increasing students' knowledge about epilepsy and fostering positive attitudes about those with epilepsy. (DLS)

This paper discusses what epilepsy is and what it is not, defines types of epileptic seizures, identifies epilepsy syndromes, discusses antiepileptic drugs, describes seizure surgery, and examines issues of quality of life. (JDD)

A patient with pica and Lennox Gastaut syndrome suddenly refused oral intake. Neck radiographs revealed no foreign body. Barium swallow identified an irregular filling defect in the cervical esophagus. Esophagoscopy showed a gold ball-like object (half a lemon) 3 cm distal to the cricopharyngeus. This object had to be removed by esophagotomy after…

There is considerable interest in the assessment of executive function (EF) in pediatric clinical populations but only a few well-standardized measures exist. We examined EF in 53 children aged 8 to 18 years with recent onset epilepsy (31 males, 22 females) and 50 control children (23 males, 27 females) using the Behavior Rating Inventory of…

Behavioral and related disorders are frequently reported in association with childhood epilepsy but the reasons for this are unclear. In a long-term prospective, community-based study of newly-diagnosed childhood epilepsy, behavioral assessments (Child Behavior Checklist) were performed in children 8 to 9 years after the initial diagnosis of…

THIS STUDY WAS DESIGNED TO DETERMINE THE INCIDENCE OF SEIZURES AMONG CHILDREN IN A PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM AND TEACHERS' KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDES ABOUT EPILEPTIC CHILDREN. OF 70,342 CHILDREN IN MINNEAPOLIS PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN SEPTEMBER 1963, 318 (A RATE OF 4.52 PER 1,000) HAD A MEDICAL DIAGNOSIS OF SEIZURES. FIFTY-SIX PERCENT OF THESE WERE BOYS AND 44…

The author suggests that an informed, optimistic approach can bring new confidence to the epileptic child in the classroom. Types of seizures are described, as are positive techniques and approaches which would be advantageous for the teacher to adopt. (KC)

Review of psychiatric hospital discharge summaries for 247 individuals with mental retardation and psychiatric disorders found that 39 had a seizure diagnosis. The only difference between the groups with and without seizures was level of mental retardation. No differences existed concerning length of stay, transfer to state hospital, psychiatric…

Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is often accompanied by interictal behavioral abnormalities, such as fear and memory impairment. To identify possible underlying substrates, we analyzed long-term synaptic plasticity in two relevant brain regions, the lateral amygdala (LA) and the CA1 region of the hippocampus, in the kindling model of epilepsy. Wistar…

We studied expressive and receptive language, oral motor ability, attention, memory, and intelligence in 20 6-year-old children with epilepsy (14 females, six males; mean age 6y 5mo, range 6y-6y 11mo) without learning disability, cerebral palsy (CP), and/or autism, and in 30 reference children without epilepsy (18 females, 12 males; mean age 6y…

This three-year pilot program provided an opportunity to work intensively with a small group of severe epileptic clients in a comprehensive rehabilitation center setting. The goals of the program were not only to evaluate intensively and attempt to maximize the individual client's potential for working and living in society through the provision…

The effects of childhood epilepsy on family interactional patterns were examined with eight families with a child with epilepsy and eight matched control Ss. Families were observed in their home environment using a coded, direct observation tool, the Family Observation Record Keyboard System (FORKS), and the portable electroencephalographic…

Material is discussed in articles by 40 contributors. Concerning physiopathogenesis of epilepsies there are introductory notes, two articles on genetics, one on neurophysiological and metabolic mechanisms, two on renal failure, a discussion of convulsive seizure and water intoxication, three articles on hypoglycemia, one on electroclinical…

An epileptic patient with an unusual compulsive behavior was successfully treated by response-contingent aversive stimulation (electric shock) by means of a specially constructed apparatus. (Author)

Review of the charts of 100 patients with mental retardation and epilepsy revealed that 60 patients were taking 1 antiepileptic drug and 40 were taking 2 or 3 drugs. Most subjects had generalized tonic-clonic seizures, but individuals with profound retardation had relatively more mixed seizures. (Author/JDD)