Sensory Problems in Children with Epilepsy

Objective The purpose of this research is to study the sensory responsivity pattern of children with epilepsy and compare it in children with the typical development and global developmental delay. Method Parents of 30 children with epilepsy, 30 children with global developmental delay (GDD) and 60 typical children 7 to 36 months of age completed the infant toddler sensory profile questionnaire. Parents used a 5-point likert scale to report the percentage of time their children engaged in each behavior. Chi -square test was used to analyze the difference in the performance of typical children, children with GDD and children with epilepsy in the five sensory processing sections and in the four quadrants. Results The performance of children with epilepsy was significantly different (pless than0.01) from typical children on all sensory processing sections and quadrants. Significant difference was observed in the auditory, tactile and oral sensory processing sections between typical children and children with GDD. Significant difference was observed in the visual, tactile, vestibular and oral sensory processing sections when compared with the performance of children with epilepsy and children with GDD. Conclusion Children with epilepsy have deficits in sensory processing abilities as measured by the sensory profile that affect their daily performance.