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Recent work has found that the presence of transient, oscillatory burst-like events, particularly within the beta band (15-29 Hz), is more closely tied to disease state and behavior across species than traditional electroencephalography (EEG) power metrics. This study sought to examine whether features of beta events over frontoparietal electrodes were associated with early life stress (ELS) and the related clinical presentation. Eighteen adults with documented ELS (n = 18; ELS + ) and eighteen adults without documented ELS (n = 18; ELS-) completed eyes-closed resting state EEG as part of their participation in a larger childhood stress study. The rate, power, duration, and frequency span of transient oscillatory events were calculated within the beta band at five frontoparietal electrodes. ELS variables were positively associated with beta event rate at Fp2 and beta event duration at Pz, in that greater ELS was associated with higher resting rates and longer durations. These beta event characteristics were used to successfully distinguish between ELS + and ELS- groups. In an independent clinical dataset (n = 25), beta event power at Pz was positively correlated with ELS. Beta events deserve ongoing investigation as a potential disease marker of ELS and subsequent psychiatric treatment outcomes., Competing Interests: Declaration of Interests/Grants BK, MV, ET, WA, AF, RT, AS, SJ, and AT have no conflicts of interest. LLC has received support (through contracts with Butler Hospital) from Neuronetics, Affect Neuro, Janssen, Neurolief, Nexstim, and Biosynapse. She has received consulting income from Neuronetics, Janssen, Sage Therapeutics, Otsuka, Neurolief, and Magnus Medical. This research was supported by National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) grant MH101107 (ART). BK is supported by K23MH129853 and P20GM130452. LC and ET are supported by P20GM130452, and AT is supported by P20GM139767., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

The present study examined clinical and demographic risk factors associated with parent-rated emotional-behavioral and executive functioning in children and adolescents with epilepsy. The medical records of 152 children and adolescents with epilepsy referred for neuropsychological evaluation were reviewed. Results indicated that the sample displayed significantly elevated symptoms across the emotional-behavioral and executive domains assessed. Executive functioning and behavioral symptoms had the highest rates of clinically elevated scores, with lowest rates of elevated scores in internalizing and externalizing emotional problems. Only 34% of those participants with clinically significant emotional-behavioral or executive functioning difficulties had a history of psychological or counseling services, highlighting the underserved mental health needs of this population. In regard to clinical factors, the majority of seizure-related variables were not associated with emotional-behavioral or executive functioning. However, the frequency of seizures (i.e., seizure status) was associated with behavioral regulation aspects of executive functioning, and the age at evaluation was associated with externalizing problems and behavioral symptoms. Family psychiatric history (with the exception of ADHD) was associated with all domains of executive and emotional-behavioral functioning. In summary, emotional-behavioral and executive functioning difficulties frequently co-occur with seizures in childhood epilepsy, with both seizure-related and demographic factors contributing to the presentation of such neurobehavioral comorbidities. The present findings provide treatment providers of childhood epilepsy with important information to assist in better identifying children and adolescents who may be at risk for neurobehavioral comorbidities and may benefit from intervention., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)