Associations between 24-hour movement guideline adherence and mental health disorders among young people with active and inactive epilepsy.

OBJECTIVE

(1) Examine 24-hour movement guideline adherence among young people with active and inactive epilepsy compared to population norms. (2) Investigate associations between 24-hour movement guideline adherence and mental health disorders among these subpopulations.

METHODS

Cross-sectional data from the 2016 to 2019 cycles of the National Survey of Children's Health were used. Parental/caregiver reports of movement behaviors (physical activity, screen time, sleep, and sport participation) were used to determine adherence to the 24-hour movement guidelines and associations with mental health disorders for young people with active (n = 663) and inactive epilepsy (n = 526) as well as population norms (n = 49,067) between 6 and 17 years old. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted.

RESULTS

Young people with active epilepsy were less likely to meet the 24-hour movement guidelines than population norms, largely driven by below average levels of physical activity guideline adherence. Sport participation was lower among both young people with active and inactive epilepsy; seizure severity and health-related limitations played an influential role. Beneficial associations were generally observed between 24-hour movement guideline adherence and mental health disorders, although for young people with active and inactive epilepsy, there was considerable variability among these relationships.

CONCLUSIONS

Further dissemination of the International League Against Epilepsy's Task Force on Sports and Epilepsy report can help improve promotion of physical activity and sport participation among young people with active and inactive epilepsy. The relationship between 24-hour movement guideline adherence and mental health disorders is complex among young people with epilepsy and longitudinal research is needed to determine causal links.