Clinical and electroencephalographic characteristics of some forms of epileptic encephalopathies in infants: The data of the authors' follow-up observations

Abstract

Objective: to study clinical symptoms and brain activity in new forms of infantile epilepsy, such as malignant migrating partial seizures in infancy (MMPSI) and Markand-Blume-Ohtahara syndrome (MBOS) and to elaborate their differential diagnostic criteria for the timely choice of treatment policy and for the prediction of the disease. Patients and methods. Thirty-eight children aged 1.5 months to 3 years with MMPSI and MBOS were examined. Their medical history and neurological examination data, electroencephalographic and neuroimaging characteristics, and the efficiency of chosen anticonvulsant therapy were investigated. Results and discussion. The investigators revealed the following characteristics of these forms: the causes of these syndromes were highly diverse and unspecific; the neurological status was characterized by a variety of symptoms with an obvious delay in psycho-prespeech development concurrent with a high rate of partial focal (in MMPSI) and generalized (in MBOS) status epilepticus; The EEC characteristic sign was MISF and «lafa» patterns in the children with MBOS and continuous migrating partial ictal status epilepticus patterns in those with MMPSI. These forms of epileptic encephalopathies are extremely drug-resistant and characterized by a high risk for a fatal outcome.