Psychogenic gelastic seizures in a patient with hypothalamic hamartoma.

Gelastic seizures are classically associated with hypothalamic hamartoma. The most effective treatment for gelastic epilepsy is surgery, although confirming that a hypothalamic hamartoma is an epileptic lesion prior to surgical intervention is challenging. Here, we report the case of a patient with a hypothalamic hamartoma who was diagnosed with psychogenic non-epileptic gelastic seizures using video-EEG monitoring.

Ictal central apnea as a predictor for sudden unexpected death in epilepsy.

Epidemiological evidence associating ictal hypoventilation during focal seizures with a heightened risk for subsequent sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) is lacking. We describe a patient with temporal lobe epilepsy with two focal seizures recorded in the epilepsy monitoring unit that were associated with central apnea lasting 57 and 58 seconds. During these events, she demonstrated oxygen desaturation down to 68 and 62%.

Aphasic status epilepticus: electroclinical correlation.

Purpose: Aphasic status epilepticus (ASE) in otherwise awake patients is a rare phenomenon. We present a series of nine consecutive patients with ASE to characterize clinical, electrophysiologic, and imaging findings.

Methods: Nine patients in ASE were identified between July 2006 and December 2009 at our institution.

Mimetic automatisms expressing a negative affect in two patients with temporal lobe epilepsy.

Ictal automatisms of fear or sadness, of which the patient is unaware and which are not preceded by a corresponding emotion, have not been well characterized. Of 557 patients admitted for video/EEG monitoring, 2 (0.36%) were identified who had automatisms of fear and sadness.

Ictal kissing: a release phenomenon in non-dominant temporal lobe epilepsy.

Background: A variety of ictal automatisms with strong emotional elements have been described. Ictal kissing has not been well characterized and may provide useful clinical information and insight into the mechanisms of stereotyped ictal behaviour.

Methods: Three of 220 patients (1.