Idiopathic Generalized Epilepsy Cognitive and Emotional Profile
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: emotional and neuropsychological assessment.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Epilepsy, Quality of Life, Neuropathology, Emotional Problem. Basic parameters: 11 years — 17 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Italy
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Official title
Idiopathic Generalized Epilepsy: Cognitive, Emotional, Behavioral Functioning, and Quality of Life
Overview
The primary goal of the study is to explore the neurocognitive, emotional-behavioral functioning, and quality of life of adolescents with IGE, identifying key factors that affect their overall well-being. The study involves participants and their caregivers completing standardized questionnaires. Additionally, clinical and anamnesic information will be collected to investigate the role of these variables on the emotional and executive functioning of the enrolled subjects
Detailed description
The 2022 ILAE classification includes several types of idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE), including childhood absence epilepsy (CAE), adolescent absence epilepsy (JAE), juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME), and generalized tonic-clonic seizure epilepsy (GTCA). While neurocognitive development is generally normal, these conditions are often associated with mood disorders, ADHD, and learning disabilities. Prognostically, patients with IGE tend to experience negative social outcomes such as poor academic performance, increased risk of unintended pregnancies, and psychiatric or emotional problems. These conditions may involve a range of seizure types, including absence, myoclonic, and tonic-clonic seizures, with EEG showing generalized spikes of 2.5-5.5 Hz.
These epilepsy syndromes are typically responsive to medication, but polytherapy is often required for optimal seizure control. The likelihood of remission and the age of remission can vary between syndromes, and patients may transition from one IGE syndrome to another. In recent years, the focus of epilepsy treatment has shifted beyond seizure control to include psychological factors, aiming to improve the patient's overall health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Studies have shown that children with epilepsy have lower HRQOL compared to healthy controls or children with other chronic conditions. Factors influencing HRQOL include psychiatric comorbidities, psychosocial challenges, cognitive and executive functioning, as well as epilepsy-specific variables such as seizure frequency, duration, and medication side effects.
The primary goal of the study is to explore the neurocognitive, emotional-behavioral functioning, and quality of life of adolescents with IGE, identifying key factors that affect their overall well-being.
Interventions
- Other emotional and neuropsychological assessment
The tests for evaluating emotional-behavioral functioning and quality of life will be self-administered by the patient/caregiver during regular follow-up visits. The cognitive assessment will be conducted by the clinician using standardized tests.
Primary outcome measures
- cognition in patients with IGE throughout standardized tool WISC IV Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - Fourth Edition) or WAIS IV Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale [Time frame: 1 year]
- quality of life in patients with IGE throughout standardized questionnaire [Time frame: 1 year]
- behavioral profile in patients with IGE throughout standardized questionnaire [Time frame: 1 year]
- executive profile of patients with IGE using standardized questionnaire BRIEF 2 [Time frame: 1 year]
Secondary outcome measures (1)
- correlation between presence of neurodevelopmental comorbilities and quality of life using an ad hoc questionnaire [Time frame: 1 year]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
Age between 11 and 18 years Diagnosis of idiopathic generalized epilepsy
Exclusion criteria
Age under 11 years or over 18 years Structural or cryptogenic epilepsy Intellectual disability or borderline cognitive level Refusal to participate in the study Failure to obtain informed consent
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Study design
- Observational model
- Case-only
Study locations
Italy · 1 center
- Clinical Trial Center — Pavia
Identifiers
NCT: NCT06782074 · IGE