title: EEG abnormalities and epilepsy in autistic spectrum disorders: clinical and familial correlates.
abstract: Our aim was to examine the characteristics of EEG findings and epilepsy in autistic spectrum disorders (ASD) and the associated clinical and familial risk factors. Fifty-seven children (86% male) with ASD, mean age 82+/-36.2 months, were included in the study. Thirty-nine (68.4%) children had the diagnosis of autism, 15 (26.3%) had Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, and 3 (5.3%) had high-functioning autism. One hour of sleep and/or awake EEG recordings was obtained for each child. All patients were evaluated with respect to clinical and familial characteristics and with the Childhood Autism Rating Scale, the Autism Behavior Checklist, and the Aberrant Behavior Checklist. The frequency of interictal epileptiform EEG abnormalities (IIEAs) was 24.6% (n=14), and the frequency of epilepsy was 14.2% (n=8). IIEAs were associated with a diagnosis of epilepsy (P=0.0001), Childhood Autism Rating Scale Activity scores (P=0.047), and a history of asthma and allergy (P=0.044). Epilepsy was associated with a family history of epilepsy (P=0.049) and psychiatric problems in the mother during pregnancy (P=0.0026). Future studies with larger samples will help to clarify the possible associations of epilepsy/IIEAs with asthma/allergy, hyperactivity, and familial factors in ASD.
authors.affiliation: Antakya State Hospital of Obstetrics and Child Care, Antakya, Turkey. ozalpekinci@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Ozalp
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ekinci
authors.forename: Ayşe Rodopman
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Arman
authors.forename: Uğur
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Işik
authors.forename: Yasin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bez
authors.forename: Meral
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Berkem
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000453:epidemiology; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000453:epidemiology; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014851:Wakefulness / Q000502:physiology