Clinical Insights into Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy: Our Experience

Abstract

Aim: Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy (JME) is predominantly observed during adolescence, characterized by myoclonic jerks exacerbated by sleep deprivation. Generalized tonic-clonic (gtc) and absence seizures are also common in JME. Patients are often photosensitive and usually require long-term treatment. This study aims to retrospectively evaluate the clinical, demographic, and electroencephalography (EEG) findings of patients diagnosed with JME at our Pediatric Neurology Clinic.
 
 Methods: Patients who were followed up at Department of Pediatric Neurology between 2017-2022, diagnosed with JME based on clinical and EEG findings, and had at least one year of follow-up were included in this study. The clinical characteristics of the patients, as well as their diagnostic and follow-up EEG results, were retrospectively reviewed.
 
 Results: Of the patients, 12 (55%) were female and 10 (45%) were male. The mean age of the patients was 17±1 (range 14-18) years, and the average age at first seizure was 13±2 (range 12-16) years. When examining the types of seizures in our cases; 12 (55%) had myoclonic and gtc seizures, 4 (18%) had a combination of myoclonic-gtc-absence, and 6 (27%) had isolated myoclonic seizures. EEG results showed that 6 (27%) of the patients had spike and multiple spike waves at 3-5.5 Hz during sleep, while the remaining 16 (73%) had these during wakefulness. Fourteen (64%) of the patients responded to photic stimulation. Six (27%) of the patients had a first-degree relative with a history of epilepsy. A significant association was found between the presence of photosensitivity and family history about epilepsy (p=0.03).
 
 Conclusion: Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy is a type of epilepsy observed in the adolescent period, characterized by myoclonic jerks and photosensitivity. The presence of family history regarding epilepsy can be a indicator for photosensitivity.