Abstracts

Although psychosocial issues for adolescents with epilepsy are receiving increased attention, the school-to-work transition needs of this population remain uncertain. Adults with epilepsy have lower levels of education and employment relative to healthy peers. Analysis of variance from an ongoing longitudinal investigation of adults with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE; n=71) and demographically similar peers (n=69) indicate lower education (p=.005) and employment levels (p[lt].001) in adults with TLE. One of the strongest predictors of employment in adulthood is employment during adolescence; however, employment of adolescents with epilepsy remains relatively understudied. The specific aims of this study are to: (1) identify the rates and patterns of competitive employment of adolescents with epilepsy in comparison with their healthy siblings and (2) identify predictors of employment among adolescents with epilepsy who are working. 50+ high school adolescents age 15 and older with epilepsy and 50 healthy controls of similar age and school status (siblings) are being recruited from a tertiary care clinic. All participating adolescents and a parent complete an employment history and activity interview to measure current employment and earnings status, rates of job seeking, and rates of lifetime employment. The adolescents with epilepsy are also measured with regard to seizure variables (severity, duration, type, number of antiepileptic medications), psychiatric co-morbidity, cognition, academic achievement, social skills, perceived stigma, recreational pursuits, and psychological empowerment. To date, 9 adolescents with epilepsy (6 female; 3 male) and 5 qualified sibling controls (1 female; 4 males) have completed study participation. Upon completion of data collection, adolescents with and without epilepsy will be compared on employment status and rates of job seeking using repeated measures analysis of covariance. Nonparametric multiple regression analysis will be used to identify predictors of employment status (employed v. unemployed) in the group with epilepsy. Power analyses indicate that the sample size will allow for detection of medium effect sizes (.35) with power of 0.80. The work experiences of adolescents with chronic epilepsy remain uncharacterized, despite the important role of adolescent employment in predicting adult employment. The purpose of this study is to characterize the employment characteristics of adolescents with and without epilepsy and to identify the factors that contribute to work status. (Supported by the Epilepsy Foundation through the generous support of the Roger F. and Edna F. Evans Fund.)