Speech and school performance in children with benign partial epilepsy with centro-temporal spikes (BCECTS)

PURPOSE To assess prospectively language and speech ability in children with benign partial epilepsy with centro-temporal spikes (BCECTS). To evaluate academic performance and social competencies both during the active disease and after remission. METHODS Right-handed school children with typical BCECTS and a control group matched by age, sex, handedness and socioeconomic status were examined. The German version of WISC-R, the "Tübinger Luria Christensen Neuropsychological Test Set for children" (TUKI), the "Verbal Learning Memory Test" (VLMT), the "Heidelberger Speech Development Test-second edition" (HSET), and the "Salzburger reading and writing test" (SLRT) were applied. The Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and a semi-structured interview were performed with the children's teachers to gain insight into school performance, behavioral and emotional problems. RESULTS During the active phase, the patient group - despite normal global intellectual abilities - showed few, but significant impairments both in expressive speech and in receptive and expressive vocabulary. A significant deficit in the ability to recognize and express interpersonal relations was also found. Patients' teachers stated deficits concerning academic performance and complained about disturbing behavior. Parents reported significantly more psycho-pathological features in the subscales "Aggressive Behavior", "Attention Problems" and "Anxious/Depressed" of the CBCL. Results were independent of medication and spike localization. After complete recovery from BCECTS, these problems were not found any more. CONCLUSIONS Both deficits of speech-related abilities (in both expressive and receptive vocabulary) and behavioral disturbances can be detected in children with typical BCECTS, but are no longer apparent after remission of the seizure disorder.