Graduate Student Nova Southeastern University Davie, Florida, United States
Objective: Children with a diagnosis of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) comorbid with epilepsy have a significantly poorer quality of life and predominantly inattentive presentation, compared to children who solely have ADHD or epilepsy (Ozalp et al., 2017). The current case study considers a neuropsychological evaluation of ten-year-old twins, both with a comorbid diagnosis of epilepsy and ADHD, and how emotional functioning and internalization of diagnoses contributes to their quality of life.
Method: At age six, both children were diagnosed with epilepsy, and exhibited tonic-clonic seizures concurrently. At age nine, both children were diagnosed with ADHD, predominantly inattentive type. A neuropsychological evaluation was conducted for each child to discover the unique strengths and deficits present, despite a congruent previous diagnosis. The evaluation included a battery of intelligence, memory, achievement, attention, executive, and emotional functioning (objective and projective) tests.
Results: Results confirmed ADHD, inattentive type in both children. They displayed strengths in verbal abilities, and evidenced deficits in executive functioning, fine motor skills, and attention. However, one twin consistently performed better in most domains. Differences were found in emotional functioning, as one twin reported clinically significant scores regarding his perception of cognitive impairment, feelings of depression, and psychological discomfort.
Conclusions: The addition of twin studies to literature is crucial, especially considering differences in the manifestation of comorbid diagnoses. Clinicians must consider the internalization of diagnoses in children, as emotion has a substantial influence on their functioning and cognitive processes. The study further emphasizes the need for emotional evaluation as a standard component of neuropsychological batteries.
