title: Decreased quality of life in children with hypothalamic hamartoma and treatment-resistant epilepsy.
abstract: We evaluated health-related quality of life in patients with hypothalamic hamartoma, to see how it differs from that of children with more common neurologic disorders. We used the PedsQL 4.0, along with the Child Behavior Checklist, Hague Seizure Severity Scale, and Side Effects Scale, to evaluate presurgical patients with hypothalamic hamartoma and epilepsy (n = 21). The results were compared with those of age-matched cohorts with migraine (n = 19) and Benign Epilepsy with Central Temporal Spikes (n = 11). In comparison with the migraine group, the patients with hypothalamic hamartoma had decreased health-related quality of life across all domains of the PedsQL 4.0. Compared with the benign epilepsy group, the hypothalamic hamartoma cohort has a significantly lower score in School Function. Comorbid psychomotor retardation was predictive of lower quality of life. Research examining the efficacy of recently developed surgical treatments for hypothalamic hamartoma should include health-related quality of life as an outcome measure.
authors.affiliation: Division of Pediatric Neurology and Hypothalamic Hamartoma Program, Barrow Neurological Institute at Phoenix Children's Hospital, Phoenix Children's Hospital, Phoenix, AZ, USA. Cleopatra.park@chw.edu
authors.forename: Cleo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Jennifer V
authors.initials: JV
authors.lastname: Wethe
authors.forename: John F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Kerrigan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006222:Hamartoma / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007027:Hypothalamic Diseases / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology*; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011788:Quality of Life; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013223:Statistics as Topic