Abstracts

The aim of this study was to investigate the speech problems in BRE according to the seizure focus in EEG and semiology., Fourteen patients [either right (7 patients) or left (7 patients) centrotemporal spikes in EEG] who met the BRE criteria by ILAE were prospectively. We excluded the patients who had abnormal MRI or showed both side spikes in EEG. Children with structural lesions in MRI, history of head injury, mentally retarded patients, and other epileptic syndromes were excluded. We performed a standardized full articulation test which covered all important aspects of language processing., Mean age of this study was 8.2 years of age. The error pattern of laryngeal articulation in BRE was exclusively substitution of stop consonants, these errors showed more frequent in the left group (16% vs 25%). VOT of stop consonants and TD of word in both groups were prolonged than normal control group, especially in left group. The first formant of vowel /o/ and second formant of /e/ were significantly decreased in left group (p[lt]0.05 ). The right group scored wider on pitch range (192.9 [plusmn] 54.0 Hz) and energy range in spontaneous speech (14.2 [plusmn] 6.4 dB) than the left group (233.3 [plusmn] 12.5 Hz and 19.4 [plusmn] 9.3 dB each), however there was no statistically significant between groups. Duration of counting (5 to 9) in left group slower than right group (8.6 [plusmn]1.7 vs 7.9 [plusmn] 1.8sec), but total pitch of counting were not different between groups., (1) The error pattern of laryngeal articulation in BRE patients was exclusively substitution of stop consonants, these errors showed more frequent in the left group. This finding of laryngeal adjustments were delayed in BRE patients. (2) The prolongations of VOT of stop consonants, TD of word, and duration of counting in both BRE patients, especially in left group can cause the speech problems in fluency. (3) As the result of measuring the vowel formant, a group of patients having epilepsy wave on the left hemisphere has been meaningfully smaller aperture (F1) and posterior place of articulation(F2). On the theory, the left hemisphere controls language, therefore variation of vowel formants is supposed to be influenced by epilepsy wave particularly (p[lt]0.05). (4) A group of patients having epilepsy wave on the right hemisphere has less change of pitch and little range of fluctuation in prosody when we compared pitch and energy scope of the counting. Right hemisphere control prosody variation of pitch and energy can be influenced of by epilepsy.
In conclusion, our data suggested that interictal spikes and seizures in either centrotemporal sides, especially left side group may induce speech problem. We recommend the logopedic and phoniatric evaluations of speech in BRE patients.,