Children with epilepsy present significant problems concerning attention and comorbidity with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Objective: To determine the prevalence of attention complaints, ADHD diagnosis and attention profile in a sample of children and adolescents with idiopathic epilepsy. Method: 36 children and adolescents with idiopathic epilepsy and 37 genre and age matched healthy controls underwent several procedures to diagnose their neuropsychological profile and comorbidity with ADHD. Results: The prevalence of ADHD was higher in patients with epilepsy [x 2 = 4.1, p = 0.043, 6 (16.7%) vs 1 (2.7%)], with worse results in attention related WISC items and factors in patients with epilepsy comparing to the controls, but not between patients with and without ADHD. Clinical characteristics did not influence those results. Conclusion: This study found a greater prevalence of problems wih attention in pediatric patients with idiopathic epilepsy, but not a distinct profile between those with or without ADHD.Keywords: epilepsy, attention, ADHD, childhood, adolescence.
RESUMOCrianças com epilepsia podem apresentar problemas de atenção e comorbidade com transtorno de atenção e hiperatividade (TDAH). Objetivo: Determinar a prevalência de queixas de atenção, diagnóstico de TDAH e perfil atentivo em uma amostra de crianças e adolescentes com epilepsia idiopática. Método: 36 crianças e adolescentes com epilepsia idiopática e 37 controles saudáveis foram submetidos a vários procedimentos para diagnosticar perfil neuropsicológico e comorbidade com TDAH. Resultados: A prevalência de TDAH foi maior em pacientes com epilepsia [x 2 = 4,1, p = 0,043, 6 ( 16,7%) vs 1 (2,7%)] , que também apresentaram piores resultados em itens e fatores dependentes de atenção do WISC. Não foram observadas diferenças entre pacientes com e sem TDAH. As características clínicas não influenciaram resultados. Conclusão: Este estudo encontrou uma maior prevalência de problemas com atenção em pacientes pediátricos com epilepsia idiopática , mas não um perfil distinto entre aqueles com ou sem TDAH.Palavras-chave: epilepsia, atenção, TDAH, infância, adolescência.Children and adolescents with epilepsy have more problems with attention, and therefore, more behavioral complaints and learning deficits 1,2 . In addition to epilepsy-related variables, many comorbidities contribute to attention deficits in this population, such as learning and psychiatric (mood and anxiety) disorders and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) 1 . ADHD is the most prevalent neuropsychiatric disorder among children in school age (5% in Brazilian sutides) 3,4 . The prevalence of ADHD is higher in children with epilepsy, ranging from 28.6% to 37.7% 1,5,6 . Some authors argue that this prevalence must be equal of the general population (3%-5%) when only patients with normal intelligence and controlled seizures were analyzed 7 . Even though, recent