Examining Child Health and Health Care Support in a Group of Off-Reserve Canadian Indigenous Children Diagnosed with Epilepsy

In comparison to children with epilepsy in the general population, little is known about the profile and outcomes of Indigenous children with epilepsy. The 2006 Aboriginal Childrens Survey (ACS) was used to examine risk and resiliency factors in a sample of Indigenous children between one and five years of age. Logistic regressions were completed on a subset of the ACS population (epilepsy group N = 600; Control group N = 5890), where children were matched according to age, sex, and health status. Indigenous children in Canada had higher rates of epilepsy compared to the overall rate of epilepsy for children in Canada. Children with epilepsy compared to those without epilepsy had significantly higher rates of vision and hearing issues, allergies, asthma/bronchitis, and speech-language difficulties. Children with epilepsy were less likely to see a specialist than those without epilepsy. Children who received breast milk were significantly less likely to have epilepsy than those children who did not receive breast milk. If a child had a medical, neurodevelopmental or mental disorder, they were more likely to have epilepsy. Caregivers who rated themselves as healthy were less likely to have a child with epilepsy; even when comparing children with poor health status those caregivers who were healthy had less chance of having a child with epilepsy. In addition to caregiver health, those caregivers who were removed from the home as children were also more likely to have children with epilepsy regardless of the childs health status. Canada will continue to face challenges in providing care to Indigenous children, unless it addresses some important gaps in how health care is provided to this vulnerable population.