title: Social competence among well-functioning adolescents with epilepsy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aims of the study were to measure the social competence of well-functioning adolescents with epilepsy and compare it with that of their healthy peers as well as to analyze the effects of epilepsy-related variables on the social competence.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ninety well-functioning adolescents with epilepsy 12-19years of age were compared with healthy controls using the Achenbach Youth Self-Report Questionnaire measures of social competence. Within the group with epilepsy, the impact of duration of epilepsy, etiology, seizure frequency, seizure type, and antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) (monotherapy or polytherapy) on the above measures was also determined.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty-five (27.8%) adolescents with epilepsy obtained Total Competence T scores in the clinical range, as opposed to only two (3.3%) of the healthy adolescents. There were statistically significant differences in the Activity and Social subscales and Total Competence T score between the group with epilepsy and the control group (p<0.05). Comparing T scores for epilepsy-related variables in the group with epilepsy, we found that there were statistically significant differences in all the social competence subscales regarding the seizure control and seizure types. No significant differences were obtained for other epilepsy-related variables: duration of epilepsy, onset of epilepsy, etiology, and AEDs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results indicate that adolescents with epilepsy are less active in clubs, socialize less with their friends, and have a poorer school performance compared with their healthy peers. This study shows that adolescents with epilepsy are at an increased risk of having difficulties in social competence.
authors.affiliation: Medical Faculty, University of Novi Sad, Department of Child Neurology and Epilepsy, Clinic for Neurology, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljka 1, Novi Sad, Serbia. Electronic address: gebauerbukurov.ksenija@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Ksenija
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gebauer-Bukurov
authors.affiliation: Medical Faculty, University of Novi Sad, Department for Child and Adolescents Psychiatry, Clinic for Psychiatry, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljka 1, Novi Sad, Serbia.
authors.forename: Jasminka
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Markovic
authors.affiliation: Medical Faculty, University of Novi Sad, Department of Child Neurology and Epilepsy, Clinic for Neurology, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljka 1, Novi Sad, Serbia.
authors.forename: Slobodan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sekulic
authors.affiliation: Medical Faculty, University of Novi Sad, Department of Child Neurology and Epilepsy, Clinic for Neurology, Clinical Center of Vojvodina, Hajduk Veljka 1, Novi Sad, Serbia.
authors.forename: Ksenija
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bozic
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D041923:Adolescent Development / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D066107:Social Skills
keywords: Adolescence; Epilepsy; Social competence