Abstract
The clinical characteristics of 10 epileptic patients with pseudoseizures (pseudoseizure group; one male and 9 females, mean age: 29. 9 years old) were compared with those of 10 epileptic patients (control group), who did not have pseudoseizures. They were matched for sex, age at present, seizure onset age, epilepsy type, and seizure type. In pseudoseizure group, 7 patients who had had epileptic seizures in their childhood had pseudoseizures in their adolescence, and 6 patients suffered from temporal lobe epilepsy. Provocative factors were clarified in 5 patients with pseudoseizures. Pseudoseizures were convulsive in 7 patients and non-convulsive in 4. In 4 patients pseudoseizures resembled epileptic seizures which they originally had. In pseudoseizure group there were CT abnormalities in 8 patients, slowing in background EEG activity in 9, mental retardation in 10. On the other hand, in control group there were CT abnormalities in 3, slowing in background EEG activity in 6, mental retardation in 1.
In diagnosing pseudoseizures we have to consider sex, age, epilepsy type, CT findings, interictal EEG findings, intelligence as well as seizure manifestations or ictal EEG findings.
