Validation of the PedsQL Epilepsy Module: A pediatric epilepsy-specific health-related quality of life measure.

Objective: To validate a brief and reliable epilepsy-specific, health-related quality of life (HRQOL) measure in children with various seizure types, treatments, and demographic characteristics.

Methods: This national validation study was conducted across five epilepsy centers in the United States. Youth 5-18 years and caregivers of youth 2-18 years diagnosed with epilepsy completed the PedsQL Epilepsy Module and additional questionnaires to establish reliability and validity of the epilepsy-specific HRQOL instrument.

Social competence in pediatric burn survivors: A systematic review.

Objective: Youth sustaining burn injuries during childhood have dramatically increased survival rates due to improvements in medical treatment and multidisciplinary approaches to burn critical care and recovery. Despite positive advancements in burn treatment, youth sustaining such injuries may experience social deficits. Thus, this systematic review without meta-analysis investigation contributes to the growing literature on this topic by comparing social competence of pediatric burn survivors to youth without burns, and examining potential correlates of social competence among children and adolescents who have sustained burn injuries.

Preliminary feasibility and efficacy of text messaging and application-based adherence interventions in adolescents with epilepsy.

Objective: Few interventions have been developed to improve treatment adherence in adolescents with epilepsy. The purpose of this study was to test the feasibility and acceptability of text messaging and application-based interventions to improve adolescent antiepileptic drug adherence. It was hypothesized that these interventions would improve adherence and would be feasible and acceptable to adolescents and their caregivers.