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Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder of school-aged children. Its association with epilepsy, reported in 8-77% of cases, is complex.We conducted a retrospective, descriptive, and analytic study from September 2018 to August 2019. We recruited patients followed for ADHD at the Centre National de Médecine Scolaire et Universitaire, and explored at the Charles Nicolle Hospital. All patients an EEG at the time of diagnosis. We collected 30 patients with a mean age of 12.27 years. The mean age of onset of ADHD was 6.73 years. ADHD was of mixed type in 18/30 cases, hyperactivity-impulsivity in 7/30 cases and inattention in 5/30 cases. Epilepsy-disease was found in 20% of patients (3/6 cases before the diagnosis of ADHD and 3/6 cases after a delay of 3.67 years). The average age of onset of seizures was 7 years: generalized tonic-clonic (4/6 cases), typical absence (1/6 cases), and focal (1/6 cases). The EEG showed inter-spinal abnormalities in 30% of patients with a left frontal predominance. We found significant associations between these anomalies and the occurrence of epilepsy.
About the author
A professora Nadia Ben Ali é perita em epileptologia e neurofisiologia clínica no Hospital Universitário Charles Nicolle, em Tunis.O Dr. Mariem Ben Mahmoud e a Dra. Hela Jamoussi são especialistas em Neurofisiologia Clínica.
