Self-assessment of well-being in a group of children with epilepsy

Abstract

Epilepsy is common in childhood, the prevalence being about five per 1000 children. The purpose of this study was to assess well-being in children with controlled epilepsy (but did not include those with obvious neurodeficits such as mental retardation or cerebral palsy) and compare them with age-matched healthy children. The patient group comprised of 31 children, 12 boys and 19 girls, whereas the control population group consisted of 342 children, 176 boys and 166 girls who were all in good health. All children involved in the study were aged between 9-13 years. A questionnaire was distributed to the children to complete. It consisted of 39 bipolar adjectives and a visual analogue scale was employed. The results show that the group of children with controlled epilepsy did not differ significantly from the age-matched control group. There was no significant difference between the sexes except for the dimension of vitality, where the boys scored better than the girls. Thus the well-being of children with controlled epilepsy seems to be similar to that of children from a control population. The psychometric properties of the instrument were also assessed. An assessment of well-being in children with intractable epilepsy, using a similar approach, is in progress.

Self-perceived quality of life of children and adolescents with physical disabilities in Hong Kong

“…The fact they had to take medications or attend clinic appointment regularly did not affect their satisfaction towards their own health. This result is similar to previous findings in adolescents with controlled epilepsy [31]. One possible explanation is that people with disabilities do not consider their disability a health problem, even if associated with medications or adaptive equipment use.…”

Factors Associated with Academic Achievement in Children with Controlled Epilepsy

“…Severity of epilepsy may account for differences in findings concerning self-esteem. Present findings are supported by a recent study (29) that found no differences between children with well controlled epilepsy and age-matched healthy children on a self-report measure of well-being (i.e., self-esteem, alertness, mood, elation, stability, and vitality).…”

Impact of Pediatric Epilepsy on the Family: A New Scale for Clinical and Research Use

“…Face-validity was noted when the level of concern increased as worsening of seizure control occurred. Interestingly, Norrby et al (24) found that children with controlled epilepsy and no obvious neurodeficits did not differ from aged-matched controls when describing themselves using 39 bipolar adjectives and a VAS of well-being. Austin et al (25), Hoare and Kerley (26), and Carpay et al (27) addressed selected concerns of children with epilepsy, such as relationships with siblings, stigma, self-esteem, and restrictions.…”