title: Neural generators of psychogenic seizures: evidence from intracranial and extracranial brain recordings.
abstract: Psychogenic seizures (PSs) convincingly mimic seizure phenomena but with no underlying epileptic activity. However, not much is known about their neurophysiological basis. We had the rare opportunity to analyze intracranial brain recordings of PSs occurring besides epileptic seizures (ESs), which identified distinct frequency changes over the parietal cortex. For further validation, we applied topographic frequency analysis to two other patients who presented PSs and ESs during long-term monitoring. The analysis revealed a power decrease in the theta band at the posterior parietal cortex in all three patients during PSs but not during ESs. These changes may reflect disturbed self-referential processing associated with some PSs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Hadassah Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel; Department of Neurology, University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland. Electronic address: shahar.arzy@ekmd.huji.ac.il.
authors.forename: Shahar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Arzy
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Center for Neuroprosthetics & Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; Faculty of Experimental Medical Sciences, Lund University, Sweden.
authors.forename: Pär
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Halje
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Psychiatry, University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Daniel S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Schechter
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Laurent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Spinelli
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Margitta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Seeck
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland; Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Center for Neuroprosthetics & Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Olaf
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Blanke
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D058256:Brain Waves / Q000502:physiology*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D012640:Seizures / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D014741:Video Recording; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: EEG; Frequency analysis; Intracranial recording; Psychogenic seizures; Theta rhythm