Intended for parents of children with seizures, the booklet provides information on etiology, treatment, diagnosis and management of epilepsy. The following topics are briefly discussed: why seizures occur, factors that may increase the frequency of seizures, types of seizures, ways to protect the child from accidental injury, and future…

Reviews the status of Supreme Court deliberations in questions surrounding a New Jersey school's search of a student's purse. The state courts found the search unreasonable and reversed a lower court decision. (MD)

The article presents a case history of a child displaying symptoms of schizophrenia, seizures, and retardation without neurological abnormalities, which were eventually diagnosed as being due to Davidoff-Dyke-Masson syndrome, a condition involving gross anatomical brain pathology. (DLS)

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 notes the importance of distinguishing between Depakene and Depakote, which is an enteric-coated formulation for which there is no generic form currently available. (DB)

To study the effectiveness of topiramate (TPM) in refractory epilepsy in patients who have intellectual disability (ID). A representative population sample of 57 patients with ID (age range 261, mean 32.8) was administered add-on TPM for drug-refractory epilepsy. Results Seizure freedom for at least for 6months was attained by 10 (17%), and…

This article presents a 10-year-old child with a 5-year history of severe hyperactivity and inattention. His medical history is significant for epilepsy since 8 years of age, with six tonic-clonic seizures in the past 2 years. The seizures are well controlled with carbamazepine, with only one seizure in the past 6 months. On assessment, he meets…

The purpose of this study was to determine school nurses' knowledge of state and school district policies, their experience regarding the administration of rectal diazepam gel in the school, and the perceived benefits and barriers of providing this treatment. Four hundred nineteen nurses responded to a survey conducted during the National…

"Child Care Health Connections" is a bimonthly newsletter published by the California Childcare Health Program (CCHP), a community-based program of the University of California, San Francisco School of Nursing, Department of Family Health Care Nursing. The goals of this newsletter are to promote and support a healthy and safe environment…

The paper looks at epilepsy, with emphasis on student problems and the role of the teacher. Initial sections describe characteristics of absence seizures, generalized tonic-clonic (grand mal) seizures, and complex partial seizures. The educator's role is considered relating to three areas: medical problems, social problems, and psychological…

Seven children (8-12 years old) with language disorders associated with convulsive disorders participated in two divided-attention tasks in which pairs of sentences were presented simultaneously. Results showed that slowing presentation of the primary sentences significantly improved performance on secondary sentences, even though secondary…

The legality of warrantless searches of students depends on the kind of search that takes place and what happens to any evidence obtained during the search. (Author/IRT)

Develops three views of the theory underlying the probable cause requirement of the Fourth Amendment. The advantage of the approach based on the rights prohibition of violent intrusions is that it provides standards based on the individual conduct rather than on governmental acts. Available from UCLA Law Review, 405 Hilgard Avenue, Los Angeles,…

Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised (WMS-R) scores were analyzed for 82 epilepsy surgery candidates and used in combination with receiver operating characteristic curves to classify patients with left (LTL) and right (RTL) temporal lobe seizure onset. Results indicate that WMS-R scores used alone or in combination provide relatively poor discrimination…

Akathisia, a state of uncontrollable motor restlessness, is a side effect of neuroleptic treatment. The prevalence rate of akathisia in 94 adults with mental retardation was estimated to be 5% in neuroleptic-free subjects, 17% in neuroleptic-maintenance subjects, and 25% in neuroleptic-reduction subjects. Akathisia was also related to dyskinesia…

This study evaluated effects on 77 institutionalized patients with mental retardation of changing from anticonvulsant Depakote to the similar drug, Depakene. Results showed no changes in seizure control, less lethargy on Depakene, but some increase in diarrhea and some changes in psychiatric symptoms. Substantial cost savings were achieved by the…