It was found, among other things, that neither the presence of congenital heart disease, nor diabetes, nor intercurrent illness appeared to have any effect on the development of seizures. The age groups with the lowest proportion of EEG abnormalities were 25-34 years (48.7 percent abnormal) and 35-44 years (54.1 percent abnormal). (Author/DLS)

This report describes a sibling pair (ages 21 and 18), both with tuberous sclerosis. One sibling has atypical autism (but no mental retardation or seizure disorder) and the other has a seizure disorder but no autism or mental retardation. Both siblings had multiple bilateral brain lesions. Clinical findings are discussed in relationship to the…

Five responses to Alvarez (EC 220 238) comment on discontinuation of antiepileptic drugs with mentally retarded patients. (DB)

Seizures can be debilitating across a number of physical, social, occupational, and personal variables. Given the deficits in all of these areas frequently present in persons with mental retardation, effective assessment and subsequent treatment of seizures is a primary goal for individuals with both mental retardation and epilepsy. To thoroughly…

Prevalence rates of epilepsy are much higher among persons with developmental disabilities compared to the general population. Anticonvulsant medication is the most common method of treating seizure disorders. Many of these antiepileptic medications (AEDs) are associated with various side effects, which may have detrimental effects on the social…

Background: The aim of this study was to analyse the impact of medical conditions of children with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities on the professional support they receive in centres for special education. Method: The medical files, the daily records and daily communication records between parents and professionals were reviewed…

The article provides information on medical problems (including seizures, nutrition, atlantoaxia instability, and congenital heart disorders), and guidelines for training (including weight management, acclimation, heat related problems, and warm-up) for volunteers working with mentally retarded participants in Special Olympics. (DB)

Antiepileptic drug prescriptions were analyzed for 337 institutionalized individuals with mental retardation, over 54 months. Results indicated decreasing numbers of individuals receiving (1) more than 2 antiepileptic drugs concurrently, and (2) barbiturates. Over 90% of a group undergoing barbiturate taper maintained the same or improved seizure…

This commentary on a study comparing use of the brand name drug Depakene with generic valproic acid to control seizures in people with mental retardation focuses on issues of cost-effectiveness. It notes existing guidelines for pharmacoeconomic evaluation and suggests a possible model to include a threshold price (per quality-adjusted life year)…

The mother of a 21-year-old mentally retarded boy, who also suffers from frequent petit mal seizures, describes the developmental and behavioral problems which led her to seek institutional placement. (LH)

A 22-month-old child with argininosuccinic aciduria presenting a 1 year with hypotonia, developmental delay, and seizures was reported. (Author)

This study, involving 90 children with mental retardation and epilepsy, classified and compared level of retardation, neurological findings, and electroencephalograms with the quality of seizure control. No correlation was found between quality of control and any of these parameters. (Author/JDD)

The study of 883 individuals, age 45 and older, with cerebral palsy and mental retardation, found (1) the presence of cerebral palsy differentiates this group, (2) there were more males than females at all age levels, (3) there were virtually no non-Whites in old-old group, (4) and there were decreases in seizure rates with age. (DB)

The use of anti-epileptic medications (AEDs) is much higher in individuals with intellectual disabilities than in the general population. As many of these individuals rely on such medications, clinicians should consider psychometrically sound instruments for assessing adverse side effects of these medications as one aspect of routine clinical…