title: Peri-ictal prolonged atrial fibrillation after generalized seizures: description of a case and etiopathological considerations.
abstract: Cardiac rhythm changes are not uncommon in connection with seizures and should be considered and recognized given their potentially harmful consequences including Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP). The most well known are ictal tachycardia and bradycardia. However, other potentially dangerous peri-ictal arrhythmias have been reported. Brief atrial fibrillation episodes, never longer than 2 min, have rarely been described in connection with seizures. We report the case of a patient who presented with two generalized tonic-clonic seizures associated with prolonged atrial fibrillation. Extensive non-invasive cardiac investigations failed to disclose cardiac abnormalities, and after proper antiepileptic drug treatment the patient had neither further seizures nor cardiac events in an 18-month follow-up. Our case, to our knowledge, is the first report of prolonged (more than 1 h) peri-ictal atrial fibrillation.
authors.affiliation: Neurology Unit, Versilia Hospital, Lido di Camaiore (Lu), Italy. marcellavedovello@gmail.com
authors.forename: Marcella
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vedovello
authors.forename: Filippo
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Baldacci
authors.forename: Angelo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nuti
authors.forename: Gabriele
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cipriani
authors.forename: Martina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ulivi
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vergallo
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Borelli
mesh_terms: D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001281:Atrial Fibrillation / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D004562:Electrocardiography; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012640:Seizures / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy; D014635:Valproic Acid / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants; D014635:Valproic Acid