Epilepsia e aprendizagem: um estudo de suas relações

Abstract

The main objective of this research was to study the relationship between epilepsy and learning processes, that has been the focus of many studies due to its great importance in health and education areas. Epilepsy is a frequent condition that occurs during childhood and its role in the genesis of schooling difficulties and the way it influences these difficulties involves doubts and debates. In this research we have studied, in an individualized and profound manner, eight cases of children with non-symptomatic epilepsy, in schoohl age, trying to establish relationships between epilepsy and learning processes. Because this is a qualitative study, we have emphasized specific characteristics of these relationships as to best identify connections between the different types of epilepsy, medication, and attitudes of the social environment and learning disabilities and it was possible for us to obtain an articulate panorama on the questions raised. From the eight children we studied, three did not present schooling difficulties attributed to epilepsy and different from those that nonepileptic children demonstrate. From the tive cases where the children did present schooling difficulties attributed to the condition, a part had a benign type of epilepsy and generally not related to schooling difficulties. The quality of life of a severe case of epilepsy with bad schooling did not present itself to be greatly affected. Results led us to conclude that it is inadequate to establish individual prognostics based in collective data; each eoileptic patient must be treated as a particular individual. Some of the data of other studies as well as common knowledge were confirmed, like the differentiated use of anti-epileptic drugs in schooling and the presence, still, of taboos and of lack of knowledge relative to epilepsy, present even in parents and professionals involved in the consultation of children, in health and education areas