Screening Children with Epilepsy for Cognitive Deficits Using the Modified Mini-Mental Scale Examination and the Digit Letter Substitution Test

Abstract

Purpose: Children with epilepsy commonly have cognitive deficits; however, full-length neuropsychological testing is time- and resource-intensive. Therefore, we evaluated the feasibility of using the modified Mini-Mental Scale Examination (MMSE) and the Digit Letter Substitution Test (DLST) to screen children with epilepsy for cognitive deficits. Methods: This was a prospective case-control study comparing scores on the MMSE and the DLST in children with epilepsy with normal age-matched controls between 8 and 12 years of age. Results: In 35 cases and 36 controls, the cases had significantly lower ( P <0.05) mean scores than the controls. The correlation coefficient between the MMSE and DLST scores was 0.902 ( P <0.001). Children with developmental or speech delays and an epilepsy duration ≥5 years had lower scores than those without the corresponding risk factors. Conclusion: This study demonstrated significantly lower scores on the MMSE and DLST in children with epilepsy than in controls, as well as significantly lower scores in patients with developmental or speech delays and an epilepsy duration ≥5 years.