Investigators at Universities of Chiete and Salerno, Italy, evaluated the neuropsychological profile of children with rolandic epilepsy (RE) at onset and of their healthy siblings. A significant impairment in language, attention, and short- and long-term memory but no impairment in visual-spatial memory was found in both patients and siblings. Verbal comprehension and working memory scores showed a positive correlation in both groups, supporting the hypothesis of a specific neurocognitive phenotype and shared genetic susceptibility in RE. [1]
COMMENT. Early recognition of the neuropsychological impairments in patients with RE should be useful in addressing educational needs and IEP resources for patients.