A new study has found that drug-resistant epilepsy in children and adolescents could increase the risk of heart problems.
Researchers from Thailand investigated change in heart rate variability (HRV) in 54 children and adolescents aged between six and 20 years old.
In general, higher rates of HRV mean that a person’s heart can adapt well to different changes in their environment, for example beating faster during exercise or slower during relaxation. Lower HRV could be a sign of health problems.
Of the 54 children, 27 were in the epilepsy group and were diagnosed with drug resistant epilepsy. Within this group, three quarters had been diagnosed with drug resistant epilepsy for more than 10 years. Just under half (44%) had daily seizures, with generalised tonic-clonic seizures being the most common type.
The results of the study found that the children and young people with drug-resistant epilepsy had lower HRV measures.
Lead study author Chinnuwat Sanguansermesri and his colleagues warned that this may make this group more likely to have heart-related health problems. They added that HRV can be used as a biomarker to assess heart health in people with drug-resistant epilepsy.
You can find the full study online on the Nature website.