Neurorehabilitation with FORAMENRehab for attention impairment in children with epilepsy

Neuropsychological and behavioral profiles of self-limited epileptic syndromes of childhood: a cross-syndrome comparison

Childhood epilepsy with centro-temporal spikes (CECTS), Childhood absence epilepsy (CAE) and Panayiotopoulos syndrome (PS) are some of the most common pediatric epileptic syndromes. Despite the relatively benign (self-limited) course of epilepsy, current evidence suggests that these conditions are associated with an increased risk of neuropsychological and behavioral comorbidities. This study provides a cross-epileptic syndromes' comparison reporting on the cognitive and behavioral profile of a cohort of 32 children with CECTS (n = 14), CAE (n = 10) and PS (n = 8), aged 6 to 15 years old. Frequent, although often subclinical cognitive difficulties involving attention, executive functions and academic abilities were found in children with CECTS and CAE, and to a lesser extent in PS. Internalizing symptoms (particularly anxiety) were more common in the PS group compared to CECTS and CAE based on parental reports. Correlational analysis revealed a significant correlation between phonemic fluency and seizure-free interval at the time of evaluation, suggesting a beneficial effect of epilepsy remission on this executive function measure in all the three groups. These results add to existing literature providing further detail on neuropsychological and behavioral peculiarities of children with CECTS, CAE, and PS. Moreover, the need for neuropsychological assessment as part of the standard childhood epilepsy evaluation is stressed. The results are discussed in the context of the current literature, highlighting areas of consensus and controversies related to the clinical management of these epileptic syndromes as well as directions for future research.

Neuropsychological group rehabilitation on neurobehavioral comorbidities in children with epilepsy

Neurobehavioral comorbidities, particularly attention-deficits, are common in children with epilepsy (CWE). Neurobehavioral problems are manifested in school performance, peer relations, and social competence. Although the high prevalence of these comorbid behavioral problems is fully recognized, there remains to be a lack of studies on the interventions targeted for CWE. A manualized neuropsychological group intervention, Rehabilitation of EXecutive Function and ATtention (EXAT) has been developed for school-aged children (aged 6-12 years) with executive function (EF) and attention-deficits. This study aimed to explore the effects of EXAT on parent- and teacher-rated attention and behavior problems in CWE compared with children with the diagnosis of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and children with no formal diagnosis but prominent deficits in EF and attention. Forty-two children attending in neuropsychological group rehabilitation EXAT between the years 2006 and 2017 participated in this retrospective registry study. The CWE group consisted of 11 children, the ADHD group with 16 children, and EF/attention group consisted of 15 children with EF attention and/or problems without diagnosis of ADHD. The CWE group did not differ from the other two study groups (ADHD and no formal diagnosis) before the EXAT intervention. This indicates that attention problems in CWE are similar to those with diagnosed ADHD. The results were promising for applying structured multilevel intervention for CWE and neurobehavioral comorbidities. Lack of group differences between the groups participating EXAT suggests similar intervention effects between CWE, ADHD, and those with less severe EF and attention problems. In parent ratings, intervention effects were higher in hyperactivity and oppositional behavior for children with attention problems and without epilepsy. Parents in the CWE group reported no effects except for one subscale related to hyperactivity. However, teachers reported consistently positive intervention effects for both inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity along with anxiety and emotional lability. The results suggest that neurobehavioral comorbidities in CWE could be targeted in neuropsychological group intervention. In conclusion, CWE seem to benefit from interventions and behavior modification techniques first developed for children with ADHD.

Attention profile in children with epilepsy compared to healthy children using computer-based ForamenRehab program

Attention is a key component in cognitive functioning. Attention impairment is often present in children with epilepsy, which is one of the most common neurological disorders in children and adolescents. Evaluating the attention profiles is important for describing the patients' cognitive weaknesses and planning individual-based cognitive neurorehabilitation. The aim of this study was to assess the attention profiles of children with epilepsy and compare the results to neurologically healthy children. Twenty-nine children with epilepsy aged 8-12 years and 19 neurologically healthy age-matched comparison group participated in assessments with baseline tasks of the Attention module of ForamenRehab computer-program. Four separate attention components were measured - focused, sustained, complex, and tracking - to reveal the most impaired aspects of attention. At the baseline level, patients showed impairments in different attention function components compared to comparison group. Children with epilepsy had significantly lower results in sustained, complex attention, and tracking components (p < 0.05). The patients had similar results with comparison group only in one component - focused attention. All children had quicker visual reaction times compared to their auditory reaction times. The results emphasize the need for attention rehabilitation in children with epilepsy and help to focus on specific components of attention in planning the intervention process.

Positive outcome of visuospatial deficit rehabilitation in children with epilepsy using computer-based FORAMENRehab program

Children with epilepsy often show deficits in attention and visuospatial functions. Still, very few systematically controlled evidence-based pediatric neurorehabilitation methods exist. The aim was to assess the effectiveness of a computer-based rehabilitation program for visuospatial deficit remediation in children with epilepsy. Fifty-eight children aged 8-12 years participated: 17 children with epilepsy diagnosis in intervention group, 22 patients in waiting-list control group, and 19 healthy age equivalent controls. The intervention group received guided visuospatial functions rehabilitation with FORAMENRehab software twice a week for a 5-week period. Baseline assessments were carried out before and immediately after the intervention period, and as follow-up 1.31 years later. Intervention group showed positive immediate rehabilitation effect in 3 out of 4 visuospatial components: visual organization, visual attention, and visuospatial perception. A long-term rehabilitation effect in the study group was observed in all 4 of the trained components. Also, a positive generalized effect was confirmed by the parents' and children's qualitative feedback with some of the improved skills transferring to children's everyday life. One hundred percent compliance further confirmed the children's motivation to participate and the effectiveness of FORAMENRehab for pediatric neurorehabilitation.