Abstracts

Adaptive functioning refers to the physical, social, and communication skills necessary for functioning in daily life. We could find no study that described adaptive functioning in children with both epilepsy and mild intellectual disability (ID). Some authors suggest that measuring adaptive functioning is more important than measuring intelligence because adaptive functioning reflects actual behavior in the context of daily life and may be amenable to intervention. The purpose of this study was to describe the relationship of adaptive functioning to behavior problems in a population of children with both epilepsy and mild developmental disability., To measure adaptive functioning, parents completed structured interviews using the Vineland Adaptive Functioning Scale (VABS). To measure behavior problems, parents completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL)., The sample was 49 children (24 girls and 25 boys) ages 9-16 years (M = 12.3) who had both epilepsy and mild ID. The mean estimated IQ was 73.5 (SD = 17.8). The mean age of seizure onset was 5.3 years and the mean duration was 7.0 years. About half (53%) of the children had two seizure types and 46% were receiving more than one AED. The CBCL scores showed high rates of behavior problems; total (M = 66.36, SD = 8.86), internalizing (M = 64.21, SD=11.26), and externalizing (M = 60.19, SD =10.78). The mean VABS scores were approximately 2 standard deviations below the norm scores for the general population; total (M = 60.69, SD = 11.12), communication (M = 60.12, SD = 12.94), daily living (M = 68.67, SD = 16.41), and socialization (M = 68.42, SD = 15.40). There was a trend for the VABS total adaptive functioning score to be negatively correlated with CBCL total behavior problems score (p =.09). The VABS daily living skills score was negatively correlated with CBCL total behavior problems score (p =.05), and CBCL externalizing score (p =.02). VABS socialization and communication scores were not significantly correlated with CBCL total scores., This pilot study showed an association between more behavior problems and poorer adaptive functioning in children with epilepsy and mild intellectual disability. Specifically, total behavior scores were correlated with both total adaptive functioning and daily living skills. Our findings are similar to those in other studies of children with mild ID and chronic disorders other than epilepsy. Our pilot study provided foundational information regarding overall adaptive functioning and behavior in children with both epilepsy and mild ID., (Supported by NR 04536.)