Narrative Abilities of Children with Epilepsy

Autor/inn/en	Strekas, Amy; Ratner, Nan Bernstein; Berl, Madison; Gaillard, William D.
Titel	Narrative Abilities of Children with Epilepsy
Quelle	In: International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 48 (2013) 2, S.207-219 (13 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1368-2822
DOI	10.1111/j.1460-6984.2012.00203.x
Schlagwörter	Epilepsy; Children; Language Skills; Language Impairments; Comparative Analysis; Seizures; At Risk Persons; Verbal Communication; Syntax; Vocabulary; Child Development; Speech Language Pathology; Brain Hemisphere Functions; Diagnostic Tests; Gender Differences; Age Differences; Rating Scales; Adults; Intelligence Tests; Grammar; District of Columbia; Maryland; Clinical Evaluation of Language Functions + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Epilepsie; Child; Kind; Kinder; Language skill; Sprachkompetenz; Speech disorder; Speech disorders; Speech disabilities; Speech disability; Speech handicap; Speech handicaps; Speech impairment; Speech impairments; Language handicaps; Sprachbehinderung; Anfallsleiden; Risikogruppe; Wortschatz; Kindesentwicklung; Diagnostic test; Diagnostischer Test; Geschlechterkonflikt; Age; Difference; Age difference; Altersunterschied; Rating-Skala; Intelligence test; Intelligenztest; Grammatik
Abstract	Background: There is a noticeable publication gap in the speech-language pathology literature regarding the language abilities of children with common types of epilepsy. This paper reviews studies that suggest a high frequency of undetected language problems in this population, and it proposes the need for pragmatically based assessment of children with epilepsy that includes analysis of spontaneous language skills. Aims: To compare the language skills of two groups of children with epilepsy--those with recent onset seizures and those with more chronic seizure activity (greater than 3 years' duration)--using a mix of standardized tests, analysis of elicited narratives and listener judgments of the children's narratives. Methods & Procedures: Twenty-five children with epilepsy, divided into two groups (recent onset versus chronic), were age- and gender-matched to 25 typically functioning peers. In addition to standardized IQ and language testing, children produced narratives to accompany the book "Frog, Where Are You?" (1969). Narratives were analysed for syntax, vocabulary and narrative components. Forty-five adult listeners each blindly rated nine narratives to create a large pool of listener judgments. Outcomes & Results: Children with chronic epilepsy showed the greatest and significant differences in both language skill and listener judgments from their unaffected peers. Differences were smaller for children whose epilepsy was of more recent onset and their matched peers. Conclusions & Implications: Although based on cross-sectional data rather than on longitudinal study, the current results raise the possibility that continued seizures, or prolonged exposure to the medications used to control them, produce decrements in children's language performance over time. Thus, the authors strongly urge that there is greater awareness of seizure disorder among speech-and-language pathologists/therapists, and they strongly recommend baseline testing at first diagnosis so that changes over time can be reliably documented. (Contains 4 tables, 2 figures, and 2 notes.) (As Provided).
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Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2017/4/10