Abstract
The analysis of clinico-electrical features was performed on children with ocipital epileptiform discharges, who were followed for more than 5 years. The epileptiform discharges were noted to appear in 23% of patients at the age of 1-10 years (mean, 5 years), and disappear in 48% of cases at the age of 4-13 years (mean, 9 years). About a half of cases revealed some evidence of organic brain lesions, but only 4 of them appeared to have organic lesions localizing in the occipital areas. Seizure types frequently observed were generalized motor seizures, unresponsiveness, vomiting, eye deviation, automatism and/or hemiconvulsion, and visual seizure was documented in 21% of cases with epileptic seizures. In comparison with children with organic brain lesion, a high incidence of febrile seizures and family history of convulsive disorders was noted in 21 cases which showed no evidence of brain lesions. Fourteen of them had been followed up to the age of 15 years, and 8 (57%) demonstrated no epileptic seizures as well as no epileptiform discharges untill that age. This benign group was characterized by an earlier onset of seizures (less than 7 years old), and a higher incidence of family history of seizure disorders, compared with patients whose seizures continued even after 20 years of age.
