Cognitive Function and Educational Achievement in Children with Focal Epilepsy and Long-Term Therapy with Oxcarbazepine

Purpose: In this study, the cognitive function of patients with simple focal and benign childhood epilepsy with centrotemporal spikes and long-term oxcarbazepine therapy was tested by psychometric tests. Materials and Methods: During the period 1998–2003, we tested 43 patients aged 5 8/12–13 9/12 years (mean age at the onset of the therapy 9 2/12 years) and 45 healthy controls, aged 6–14 years. All of them underwent a complete neurological examination, EEG, brain MRI, psychometric tests (WISC-III, Bender-Santucci, Illinois test) before treatment. The reexamination took place after 12 and 24 months of therapy. No…