Prognostic factors for outcome in pediatric probable lesional frontal lobe epilepsy with an unknown cause (cryptogenic)

The outcomes of children with cryptogenic seizures most probably arising from the frontal lobe are difficult to predict. We retrospectively collected data on 865 pediatric patients with epilepsy. In 78 patients with cryptogenic frontal lobe epilepsy, the age at first seizure was inversely correlated with the outcome, including the degree of intellectual disability/developmental delay (P = .002) and seizure frequency (P = .02) after adequate treatment. Intellectual disability was more prevalent in children with a first seizure at 0 to 3 years old (P = .002), and seizures were more frequent in those with a first seizure at 0 to 6 years old than at 7 to 16 years old (P = .026). For pediatric cryptogenic frontal lobe epilepsy, the age at first seizure is important and inversely correlated with outcome, including seizure frequency and intellectual disability.