Childhood occipital epilepsy of Gastaut: a study of 33 patients.
OBJECTIVE
To characterize the electroclinical features and evolution of childhood occipital epilepsy of Gastaut (COE-G).


METHODS
Children with electroclinical criteria of COE-G were retrospectively identified and followed-up clinically, and with sleep and awake EEGs between 1990 and 2007.


RESULTS
We identified 33 patients with COE-G. In the same length of time, 201 children with Panayiotopoulos syndrome and 410 children with benign childhood epilepsy with centrotemporal spikes were registered. COE-G had a peak age at onset of 8.5 years. Visual manifestations were the most common ictal event. Ictal deviation of the eyes was frequent. Approximately half of the patients had migraine-like symptoms. In all patients the seizures occurred while awake, and 11 also had seizures during sleep. The majority of the patients had occipital spike-wave discharges when the eyes were closed that disappeared or attenuated when the eyes were opened. Prognosis was excellent in 80% of the cases.


CONCLUSIONS
This study confirms the existence of COE-G, a rare but well-defined syndrome within the group of idiopathic focal epilepsies in childhood.
Caraballo
Roberto Horacio
RH
Neurology Department, Hospital Nacional de Pediatría "Prof Dr Juan P Garrahan", Buenos Aires, Argentina. rhcaraballo@arnet.com.ar
Cersósimo
Ricardo Oscar
RO
Fejerman
Natalio
N
D000293:Adolescent; D017668:Age of Onset; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004569:Electroencephalography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004828:Epilepsies, Partial / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D019305:Epilepsy, Rolandic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008881:Migraine Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D009778:Occipital Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology; D013577:Syndrome; D014851:Wakefulness / Q000502:physiology