Resection of Temporal Neocortex During Multiple Hippocampal Transections for Mesial Temporal Lobe Epilepsy Does not Affect Seizure or Memory Outcome.

Background: Multiple hippocampal transection (MHT) is a surgical treatment for mesial temporal lobe epilepsy associated with improved postoperative neuropsychological outcomes compared with lobectomy.

Objective: To determine whether resection of the amygdala and anterior temporal neocortex during MHT affects postoperative seizure/memory outcome.

Methods: Seventeen patients with normal magnetic resonance imaging and stereo-electroencephalogram-proven drug-resistant dominant mesial temporal lobe epilepsy were treated with MHT.

Temporal lobe epilepsy in patients with nonlesional MRI and normal memory: an SEEG study.

Object: Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) in the absence of MRI abnormalities and memory deficits is often presumed to have an extramesial or even extratemporal source. In this paper the authors report the results of a comprehensive stereoelectroencephalography (SEEG) analysis in patients with TLE with normal MRI images and memory scores.

Methods: Eighteen patients with medically refractory epilepsy who also had unremarkable MR images and normal verbal and visual memory scores on neuropsychological testing were included in the study.

Visual-spatial memory may be enhanced with theta burst deep brain stimulation of the fornix: a preliminary investigation with four cases.

Memory loss after brain injury can be a source of considerable morbidity, but there are presently few therapeutic options for restoring memory function. We have previously demonstrated that burst stimulation of the fornix is able to significantly improve memory in a rodent model of traumatic brain injury. The present study is a preliminary investigation with a small group of cases to explore whether theta burst stimulation of the fornix might improve memory in humans.

Depressive symptoms in parents of adolescents with myelomeningocele: the association of clinical, adolescent neuropsychological functioning, and family protective factors.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to determine if neuropsychological functioning and family protective factors are related to depressive symptoms in parents of adolescents with myelomeningocele (MMC).

Methods: Fifty adolescents (28 females, 22 males; predominately Caucasian; ages 12-21 years, M=15.7, SD=2.

Language and social functioning in children and adolescents with epilepsy.

Individuals with epilepsy have difficulties with social function that are not adequately accounted for by seizure severity or frequency. This study examined the relationship between language ability and social functioning in 193 children with epilepsy over a period of 36months following their first recognized seizure. The findings show that children with persistent seizures have poorer language function, even at the onset of their seizures, than do their healthy siblings, children with no recurrent seizures, and children with recurrent but not persistent seizures.

Adaptive functioning in children with epilepsy and learning problems.

In the study we describe adaptive functioning in children with epilepsy whose primary caregivers identified them as having learning problems. This was a cross-sectional study of 50 children with epilepsy and learning problems. Caregivers supplied information regarding the child's adaptive functioning and behavior problems.

Self-esteem and symptoms of depression in children with seizures: relationships with neuropsychological functioning and family variables over time.

Purpose: To test over time the relationships of neuropsychological functioning to mental health in children following a first recognized seizure and, of primary importance, to determine if the strength of these relationships differs based on risk and protective factors.

Methods: In a larger prospective study, 135 children with a first seizure (ages 8-14 years) and 73 healthy sibling controls completed neuropsychological testing at baseline and 36 months. Structured telephone interviews were used to obtain data from children on mental health and family environment; major caregiving parents provided data on demographic and family variables.

Magnetic resonance imaging findings in children with a first recognized seizure.

This study characterized structural abnormalities associated with onset of seizures in children, using magnetic resonance imaging and a standardized classification system in a large prospective cohort. Two hundred eighty-one children aged 6-14 years completed magnetic resonance imaging within 6 months of their first recognized seizure. Most examinations were performed with a standardized, dedicated seizure protocol; all were scored using a standard scoring system.

The relationship of neuropsychological functioning to adaptation outcome in adolescents with spina bifida.

Adolescents with spina bifida (SB) vary in their ability to adapt to the disease, and it is likely that numerous risk and protective factors affect adaptation outcomes. The primary aim was to test neuropsychological impairment, exemplified herein by executive dysfunction, as a risk factor in the Ecological Model of Adaptation for Adolescents with SB. Specific hypotheses were that: (1) executive functioning predicts the adaptation outcome of functional independence in adolescents with SB; (2) executive functioning mediates the impact of neurological severity on functional independence; and (3) family and adolescent protective factors are related to functional independence and moderate the relationship between executive functioning and functional independence.

The relationship between sleep problems and neuropsychological functioning in children with first recognized seizures.

Epilepsy is associated with sleep disturbance, but little is known about how early this relationship develops and how it affects neuropsychological functioning. This study documented the frequency and types of sleep problems and examined how sleep problems are associated with seizures and neuropsychological functioning in 332 children following their first recognized seizure (ages 6-14) and in 225 sibling controls. Formal neuropsychological batteries were administered to all subjects.

Academic underachievement among children with epilepsy: proportion exceeding psychometric criteria for learning disability and associated risk factors.

This study assessed rates of learning disabilities (LD) by several psychometric definitions in children with epilepsy and identified risk factors. Participants (N = 173, ages 8-15 years) completed IQ screening, academic achievement testing, and structured interviews. Children with significant head injury, chronic physical conditions, or mental retardation were excluded.

The association of MRI findings and neuropsychological functioning after the first recognized seizure.

Purpose: To explore relationships between MRI abnormalities of the brain and neuropsychological functioning in children who were evaluated following their first recognized seizure.

Methods: Subjects were children aged 6 to 14 years with a first recognized seizure within the past 3 months who participated in a larger prospective study of child adaptation. The 249 children with neuropsychological testing and neuroimaging were studied.

Teachers' ratings of the academic performance of children with epilepsy.

The present study examined how knowledge of a child's seizure condition is related to teachers' assessment of the child's academic ability. Children with epilepsy were divided into two groups based on teachers' awareness of the children's seizure condition (Label). The children's achievement was assessed using the Woodcock Johnson Tests of Achievement-Revised (WJ-R), and the teacher's ratings were obtained from the Child Behavior Checklist Teacher Report Form (TRF) (Source).

Sexuality issues in adolescents with a chronic neurological condition.

Substantial progress in the medical treatment of individuals with spina bifida (SB) has increased the numbers who survive into adolescence and adulthood. However, sexual health in this population has not received much attention. This study explored the knowledge (SB Sexuality Knowledge Scale), worries (SB Worries Scale), romantic appeal (from Harter's Self-Perception Scale), and access to sexuality information of a sample of 60 adolescents from a midwestern state.

Development and validation of the Subjective Awareness of Neuropsychological Deficits Questionnaire for Children (SAND-C).

Although lowered awareness of abilities has been associated with poorer outcome in adults with neurological compromise, a dearth of research exists examining whether lowered awareness exists in younger populations. Using findings from recent literature and expert opinion, a 47-item Subjective Awareness of Neuropsychological Deficits Questionnaire for Children (SAND-C) was created to assess awareness of cognitive functioning in 6 domains (attention, psychomotor, visual-spatial, language, memory, and executive functioning). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the SAND-C was conducted on a sample consisting of 365 healthy children and 48 children with epilepsy.

Practice effects and the use of alternate forms in serial neuropsychological testing.

Accurate understanding of practice characteristics, performance stability, and error on neuropsychological tests is essential to both valid clinical assessment and maximization of signal detection for clinical trials of cognitive enhancing drugs. We examined practice effects in 28 healthy adults. As part of a larger study using donepezil and simulating a Phase I trial, participants were randomized into: placebo, no-treatment and donepezil.

Neuropsychological correlates of electroencephalograms in children with epilepsy.

Introduction: This study examined the degree to which neurophysiological activity on routine clinical EEG is associated with neuropsychological deficiencies in children with epilepsy.

Methods: Ninety-five children with epilepsy (58 chronic, 37 recent-onset; mean age = 10.41 years, S.

Test-retest reliability of the Extended Complex Figure Test--Motor Independent administration (ECFT-MI).

The Extended Complex Figure Test (ECFT; Fastenau, 1996b, 2003a), adds recognition and matching trials to the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test (ROCFT). An alternate administration of the ECFT, the ECFT-Motor Independent version (ECFT-MI; Fastenau, 2003a) measures visuospatial memory without the motoric demands of the ROCFT. ECFT-MI test-retest reliabilities were examined in 55 healthy adults tested two times separated by one week.

Effects of test order and modality on sustained attention in children with epilepsy.

Neurological conditions affect sustained attention, but the effects of modality and interactions with test order have not been examined. In a 2 x 2 (Order x Modality) design using 54 children with chronic epilepsy, performance was compared on an auditory measure (modified Seashore Rhythm Test) versus a visual measure of attention (modified Conners' Continuous Performance Test). Auditory scores were worse than visual, F(1, 52) = 98.

Neuropsychological predictors of academic underachievement in pediatric epilepsy: moderating roles of demographic, seizure, and psychosocial variables.

Purpose: Academic underachievement is common in pediatric epilepsy. Attempts to identify seizure and psychosocial risk factors for underachievement have yielded inconsistent findings, raising the possibility that seizure and psychosocial variables play a complex role in combination with other variables such as neuropsychological functioning. This study cross-validated a neuropsychological measurement model for childhood epilepsy, examined the relation between neuropsychological functioning and academic achievement, and tested the degree to which demographic, seizure, and psychosocial variables moderate that relation.

Comparative neuropsychological function in obsessive-compulsive disorder and schizophrenia with and without obsessive-compulsive symptoms.

Executive function deficits are seen in both schizophrenia and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), but research suggests that dorsolateral prefrontal (DLPF) dysfunction is associated with schizophrenia and orbitofrontal (OBF) dysfunction is associated with OCD. As part of a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment, the Bechara Gambling Task (BGT) was used to assess OBF function and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) was used to assess DLPF function among three groups: 26 individuals with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder with obsessive-compulsive symptoms (SCZ+), 28 individuals with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder without obsessive-compulsive symptoms (SCZ-), and, 11 individuals with OCD. It was predicted that the SCZ+ group and the OCD group would show impairments in OBF function, as compared to the SCZ- group, and that the SCZ+ and SCZ- groups would show impairments in DLPF function, as compared to the OCD group.

Adolescents with myelomeningocele: activities, beliefs, expectations, and perceptions.

The Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development, USA has identified activities, beliefs, and perceptions critical for healthy development. The aim of this study was to measure the activities, beliefs and expectations, and perceived outcomes of adolescents with myelomeningocele. In this descriptive study, 66 adolescents with myelomeningocele, aged 12 to 21 years and functioning at grade level, completed a structured interview.