Childhood epilepsy represents abnormal brain functioning and may affect cog
nitive functions that depend on the late development of the frontal lobes.
This study addresses the possible consequences of benign epilepsy on fronta
l functions, specifically action regulation and inhibition in the absence o
f explicit frontal neurological signs. Thirteen children (8 males; 6-12 yea
rs old) with benign epilepsy were matched to 13 controls. They performed ta
sks designed to measure impulsivity and control of inhibition: CPT, Stop Si
gnal Paradigm, Stroop test, and Matching Familiar Figures Test (MFFT). Chil
dren with epilepsy made more errors on the MFFT (p < .02), made more errors
in the interference condition on the Stroop test (p < .01), and had a long
er response time to the Stop Signal (p < .05) than controls, with no differ
ences on nonexecutive functions measures. Thus, children with benign epilep
sy have a deficit on some measures of impulsivity and inhibition, which may
reflect poor frontal lobe functioning, (C) 2000 Academic Press.