Everyday Memory in Children After Resective Epilepsy Surgery

Abstract

This study investigated parent reports of everyday memory and performance on objective memory tests in children with intractable epilepsy. Participants were 119 children with epilepsy (75 of whom underwent surgery) and 57 healthy controls. The group with epilepsy was examined twice, approximately 2 years apart. Parents reported on their child's memory as manifested in everyday activities and situations, and children with epilepsy completed standardized objective memory tests. At baseline, the children with epilepsy had poorer everyday memory than the healthy control group. Memory did not change significantly over time in the children with epilepsy, and no changes were found related to surgery or to seizure outcome. Intractable epilepsy in childhood is associated with difficulty in using memory in everyday activities. Resective surgery does not result in changes in the parents' observations of their child's memory as manifested in their daily functioning or in the child's performance on objective measures of memory.