Tic Disorders in Children with Epilepsy: Effect on Behavior and Quality of Life

Abstract

Idiopathic Epilepsy in children is associated with several comorbidities. Tics and other deviant behaviors are some of them which could negatively impact the family quality of life. The current study aimed at comparing quality of life and behavioral test results in children with epilepsy and tics versus those with epilepsy only. Patients and Methods Sixty patients with idiopathic epilepsy aged from 4 to 18 years participated in the current study. Group I included 30 patients with idiopathic epilepsy and tic disorders aged 10.1+/-3.2 years and group II 30 with epilepsy only aged 10.1+/-3.1 years. The Arabic version of the Pediatric quality of life inventory 4.0 (PedsQLTM 4.0), the Arabic translation of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) scores were used and Conner’s parent rating scale were used. The results were compared between the 2 participating groups. Results Group I patients had worse total quality of life scores for both the child’s and parent’s scores compared to group II patients (p<0.05). CBCL scores were significantly higher in group I regarding most of the internalizing and externalizing domains yet the total score was non-significantly higher in group I compared to group II (p=0.05). Group I patients had higher total Conner’s score compared to group II; (p=0.045). Furthermore, those with ADHD in group I was 70% compared to 50% in group II. Conclusion Tic disorders in the context of idiopathic epilepsy should be addressed seriously as they are associated with other behavioral defects that require intervention to achieve better quality of life.