Startle epilepsy presenting as drop attacks: a case report.
A case of startle epilepsy, induced by an unexpected touch on the left shoulder of a 3.5 year old boy, was investigated. The startle epilepsy manifested as an atonic drop attack. Neurological examination revealed a mild hemiparesis on the left side. Computed tomography (CT) scanning demonstrated an enhancement over the right parieto-frontal region, suggesting a hemangioma. Interictal electroencephalography (EEG) showed diffuse slowing and asymmetry of background activities with lower amplitude over the right centro-parieto-temporal region. The ictal EEG showed a paroxysmal bilaterally synchronized high amplitude single spike followed by a few slow waves lasting about one second over the bilateral centro-parieto-temporal regions. The seizure resisted anticonvulsant therapy and no significant responses were observed despite the use of combined therapy with valproic acid, phenytoin, primidone and clonazepam.
Neurological Institute, Veterans General Hospital-Taipei, Taiwan, R.O.C.
Y Y
YY
Lin
M S
MS
Su
C H
CH
Yiu
S Y
SY
Kwan
Y F
YF
Tu
W Y
WY
Guo
T T
TT
Wong
K P
KP
Chang
D002675:Child, Preschool; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D013216:Reflex, Startle; D014110:Touch