title: Non-epileptic myoclonic attacks in infancy: three cases.
abstract: Since the first cases of abnormal paroxystic movements in normal infants were described, the importance of accurate characterization of this medical condition has been increasingly confirmed in the literature. Non-epileptic attacks mimic epileptic paroxysms in clinical presentation, but they have a typically benign course and are unresponsive to pharmacological treatment. An evident feature of the syndrome is its extreme variability in clinical manifestation. Here, we describe three normal infants with two similar forms of non-epileptic paroxysms. Electroclinical manifestations and profile of evolution were investigated. Ictal video-EEG polygraphic recordings were obtained for each patient. The increasing number of such reported clinical cases in the literature may contribute to high quality systematic reviews and the development of useful guidelines in the future. The clinical heterogeneity of non-epileptic attacks, together with the relative rarity of the condition, may make differential diagnosis with epileptic attacks very challenging. [Published with video sequences].
authors.affiliation: Epilepsy Center, San Paolo Hospital, Milan, Italy, Department of Health Sciences, University of Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Aglaia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vignoli
authors.affiliation: Unit of Child and Adolescent Neuropsychiatry, Spedali Civili, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Lucio
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Giordano
authors.affiliation: Epilepsy Center, San Paolo Hospital, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Guerra
authors.affiliation: Epilepsy Center, San Paolo Hospital, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: La Briola
authors.affiliation: Unit of Child and Adolescent Neuropsychiatry, Spedali Civili, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Accorsi
authors.affiliation: Epilepsy Center, San Paolo Hospital, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Miriam Nella
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Savini
authors.affiliation: Unit of Child and Adolescent Neuropsychiatry, Spedali Civili, Brescia, Italy, Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Iodice
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Developmental Science, University of Trieste and Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Molinaro
authors.affiliation: Epilepsy Center, San Paolo Hospital, Milan, Italy, Department of Health Sciences, University of Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Maria Paola
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Canevini
mesh_terms: D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009207:Myoclonus / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012640:Seizures / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D014743:Videotape Recording
keywords: head drop; infancy; non-epileptic attacks; video-EEG recording