title: Hypothalamic hamartoma and gelastic epilepsy: a case report.
abstract: We studied a 6-year-old girl who presented with inappropriate and uncontrollable laughing episodes since age 3. Physical examination revealed a precocious puberty. The luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) stimulation test showed an increased level of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). The interictal electroencephalogram (EEG) was normal. Several laughing fits were documented during video/EEG monitoring. During laughing, the ictal EEG showed a diffuse suppression of background rhythm, prominent over the left mesial temporal region. A mass lesion about 2 x 2 cm in size was found over the suprasellar cistern with a broad base attached to the hypothalamus, which was isodense on a computed tomography (CT) scan, isointense to gray matter on T1-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and hyperintense on T2-weighted MR imaging. The findings were suggestive of a hypothalamic hamartoma. A variety of anticonvulsants had been used with little or no response to the frequency or duration of the laughing seizures.
authors.affiliation: Section of Neurology, Veterans General Hospital-Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.
authors.forename: Y Y
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Yiu
authors.forename: S Y
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Kwan
authors.forename: Y F
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Tu
authors.forename: T T
authors.initials: TT
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: K P
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Su
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006222:Hamartoma / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D007027:Hypothalamic Diseases / Q000150:complications*; D007845:Laughter; D011629:Puberty, Precocious / Q000209:etiology