DYNAMICS OF HIGHER MENTAL FUNCTION CHANGES IN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS WITH PARTIAL FORMS OF EPILEPSY IN CLINICAL REMISSION

Abstract

Study aim: to study the dynamics of changes of higher mental functions in children and adolescents with partial epilepsy forms. Study participants and methods. The study involved patients 6-16 years of age (15 people). Complex neuropsychological examination of the higher mental functions was conducted in children and adolescents with localized (focal, partial) epilepsy forms. Repeated neuropsychological examination was conducted 1 year later to reveal changes in the preregistered symptoms. Results. The most frequent and pronounced disorders in the primary examination were spatial, kinesthetic and constructive praxis disorders, visual-spatial and acoustic-nonvoice gnosis disorders, increased inhibition of traces, audio-verbal and visual memory constriction, defective order of reproducing words (figures) in stimulus sequence (transient errors), spatial errors in visual-constructive thinking, paragraphia. Thus, higher intensity of symptoms of the functional cerebral block II was registered. Repeated examination 1 year later showed slight changes in symptoms characterizing cerebral block II disorders; more serious changes affected symptoms connected with disorders in cerebral blocks III and I. Conclusions: symptom complexes of the functional block II, directly connected to epileptic nidi, appeared to be more resistant and hardly amenable to involution.

Keywords

• partial (focal) epilepsy
• neuropsychological examination
• higher mental functions
• childhood and adolescence