Interictal mood and personality disorders in temporal lobe epilepsy and juvenile myoclonic epilepsy.

BACKGROUND: Mood disorders have been described as the commonest psychiatric disorders in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy. Secondary depression in temporal lobe epilepsy could be interpreted either as an adjustment reaction to a chronic disease or as a limbic dysfunction. To clarify this issue, a controlled study of psychiatric disorders was conducted in different forms of epileptic and non-epileptic chronic conditions. METHODS: Twenty outpatients with temporal lobe epilepsy, 18 outpatients with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy--a primary generalised seizure disorder--20 matched type I diabetic patients, and 20 matched normal controls were assessed by a structured interview (SADS) and by self rating scales (Beck depression inventory (BDI) and the state and trait anxiety scales STAIX1 and STAIX2). RESULTS: Sixteen (80%) patients with temporal lobe epilepsy fulfilled the criteria for a psychiatric diagnosis at the SADS interview with a significantly higher frequency than patients with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (22%) and diabetic patients (10%) (P < 0.0001). The most frequent disorder in temporal lobe epilepsy was a mood disorder: 11 (55%) patients with temporal lobe epilepsy had depression compared with three patients with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy and two diabetic patients (P < 0.001). Eight patients with temporal lobe epilepsy with an affective disorder also had a comorbid personality or anxiety disorder. Patients with temporal lobe epilepsy scored significantly higher on BDI, STAIX1, and STAIX2 than the three control groups (P < 0.001, P < 0.01, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with temporal lobe epilepsy have a higher incidence of affective and personality disorders, often in comorbidity, than patients with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy and diabetic patients suggesting that these psychiatric disorders are not an adjustment reaction to a chronic disease but rather reflect a limbic dysfunction.     

GENETIC FACTORS IN TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPSY

Genetic investigation of 74 patients with temporal lobe epilepsy, resistant to medication, who underwent unilateral temporal lobectomy 1960-1969. Thirty per cent had a positive family history of epilepsy; 49 per cent of other neurological diseases; and 46 per cent of major psychiatric disorders. Neither of the genetic factors per se influenced the therapeutic result or the psychiatric status at follow-up. A multiple epileptic or neurological predisposition affecting first degree relatives unfavourably influenced the prognosis regarding relief from seizures. A multiple psychiatric predisposition in parents and/or siblings unfavourably influenced the psychiatric status.     

Neuropsychology and psychopathology: cognitive analysis during medically refractory epilepsy surgery

In psychopathology, few studies have been focused on the psychiatric complications of medically refractory mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE). The aim of the present study was to study NG's capacities, who presented emotional change after right temporal epilepsy surgery with phobias and empathy disorders. NG was examined in two emotional judgment tasks: one explicit and another implicit. For negative stimuli, NG had attraction in the explicit task and dependency in the implicit task. This study suggests that surgical intervention might be one of the causes of postoperative psychiatric disorders in patients with MTLE. MTLE patients have to be explored with neuropsychological paradigms.     

Psychoses of epilepsy: a study comparing the clinical features of patients with focal versus generalized epilepsies

In the literature, psychosis of epilepsy (POE) has been described as one of the most frequent psychiatric comorbidities of epilepsy, occurring particularly in association with temporal lobe epilepsy. However, the presence of such psychiatric disorders among patients with idiopathic generalized epilepsies has also been mentioned. In this study, we evaluated the clinical features of psychotic disorders in a series of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy related to mesial temporal sclerosis (TLE-MTS) and juvenile myoclonic epilepsy with the aim of describing and comparing the clinical patterns of the psychotic symptoms in such frequent and important epilepsy syndromes. POE occurred most frequently in patients with TLE-MTS (P=0.01), but no differences were observed between the groups with respect to the subtypes and core symptoms of psychoses. The clinical implications of POE in both epilepsy syndromes are discussed.     

Psychopathology in children with epilepsy before and after temporal lobe resection

The aim of this study was to establish the rate and spectrum of psychiatric disorder among children before and after temporal lobe surgery for epilepsy. Data were examined for associations between psychopathology and seizure outcome following surgery, or association between psychopathology and other variables, such as laterality of lesion, sex, cognitive level, and underlying pathology. Participants were 60 children (35 males, 25 females) who had focal seizures of temporal lobe origin and who had undergone temporal lobe resection between 1992 and 1998; mean age at time of operation 10 y 7 mo, (SD 4 y 11 mo) range 7 mo to 17 y 11 mo. Mean length of follow-up was 5.1 years (SD 2.3, range 2 to 10 y). Twenty-eight (47%) children had undergone right temporal lobectomy. Diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder was present in 50/60 (83%) children at some point, with high rates of psychiatric comorbidity. Common childhood psychiatric disorders of attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder/conduct disorder, and emotional disorders were present in about 25% of children. Disorders rarely seen in the general child population were over-represented: disruptive behaviour disorder--not otherwise specified (30/60 [50%]), and pervasive developmental disorder (autistic spectrum disorder; 23/60 [38%]). there was no significant relationship between pathology, sex, seizure frequency, or postoperative seizure outcome and psychiatric disorder, other than for pervasive developmental disorder. The same proportion of children had psychiatric diagnoses pre- and postoperatively (43/60 [72%] and 41/57 [72%] respectively). Although mental health problems are common in children undergoing temporal lobe resection, there are few predictors of psychiatric outcome following epilepsy surgery. Parents require counselling on these issues in the preoperative work-up.     

Comparison of cognitive ability, personality profile, and school success in epileptic children with pure right versus left temporal lobe EEG foci

By reviewing electroencephalographic reports compiled over five years and checking clinical details, we identified and studied 27 children with apparently pure left or pure right temporal lobe epilepsy. The children underwent neurological examination and neuropsychological testing (Halstead-Reitan Battery, Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children [WISC] and Wide Range Achievement Test), and parents completed the Personality Inventory for Children (PIC). Of 15 boys and 12 girls with a mean age of 12.7 years, 14 had right and 13 left temporal lobe epilepsy. Seizure control was excellent in 17. Five (2 with left, 3 with right temporal lobe epilepsy) had received professional emotional help, 6 (3 with left, 3 with right focus) received special help at school, and 5 (3 with left, 2 with right focus) had failed a grade in school. No significant left-right differences were seen in WISC full scale, verbal, or performance IQ scores, neuropsychological test battery findings, or clinical scale scores on the PIC. Most of the children with unilateral temporal lobe epilepsy had no measurable cognitive or emotional difficulties. Cognitive, personality, and school problems were equally distributed between left and right temporal lobe epilepsy groups. When the two groups were combined, however, 10 patients (5 with left, 5 with right focus) were identified by the PIC as maladjusted, and as a group showed significantly lower neuropsychological test functioning than did the normally adjusted children.     

Depressive Symptomatology in a General Hospital Sample of Outpatients with Temporal Lobe Epilepsy: A Controlled Study

Summary: We compared temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) outpatients attending a general hospital with depressed psychiatric patients and normal control subjects to investigate depressive symptomatology. Both clinicianrated measures and self-report questionnaires were used. Rates of depressive and anxious symptomatology in TLE subjects were higher than those in a normal control sample, but TLE subjects did not differ significantly from controls on anxiety measures. The depressed psychiatric group scored higher than the TLE and control groups on both depression and anxiety measures. Rates of depressive symptomatology in the TLE group were lower than those reported in previous studies for persons attending specialist epilepsy clinics, but similar to the findings of one community study.     

A multicenter study on the prevalence of psychiatric disorders among new referrals for epilepsy in Japan

PURPOSE: To investigate the prevalence rate and risk factors of psychiatric disorders among new referrals for epilepsy, a multicenter study was conducted by using the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) criteria for epilepsy and the ICD-10 criteria for psychiatric disorders. METHODS: From April 2000 to March 2001, 398 patients with epilepsy, who were referred to nine neuropsychiatric outpatient clinics specialized for epilepsy in the Tokyo metropolitan area, were evaluated by using a newly developed five-axis classification scheme. RESULTS: Forty-two percent of the subjects showed a psychiatric disorder. Twenty-four percent of the total showed psychiatric disorders, including neurotic disorders in 8%, psychotic disorders in 7%, and affective disorders in 1%. In addition, 23% of the total showed mental retardation, and 18% showed personality disorders. A logistic regression analysis revealed that the three risk factors for a psychiatric disorder were mental retardation, temporal lobe epilepsy (as opposed to other subtypes), and a high seizure frequency. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of mental retardation was the primary risk factor for developing a psychiatric disorder, especially a schizophrenia-spectrum disorder. The type of epilepsy alone is not a strong predictor of psychiatric illness, and intractable temporal lobe epilepsy with a high seizure frequency is accountable for the link between the epilepsy and the psychiatric illness.     

Complex partial seizures and depression

A long-recognized association exists between epilepsy and affective disturbance, especially depression. People with complex partial seizures that result from temporal lobe seizure foci are highly vulnerable to psychiatric disorders. Accurate diagnosis of such disorders is an important key to treatment. Interictal depression or dysphoria is the most clinically significant problem of this type. Pharmacotherapeutic treatments that have positive effects in other types of depressive illness are also effective for depression associated with epilepsy. Electroconvulsive therapy is helpful to some patients with depression that is refractory to drug treatment or psychotherapy. Surgical resection of seizure foci may lead to psychiatric improvement for some individuals, but can also have psychiatric complications.