Adult motor phenotype differentiates Dravet syndrome from Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and links SCN1A to early onset parkinsonian features

Abstract

Distinguishing adult patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome from those with Dravet syndrome is challenging. We have previously reported that patients with Dravet syndrome present a very peculiar motor phenotype. Here we sought to confirm that this association was not linked to the chronic use of antiepileptic drugs or the many lifetime seizures. To this aim, we studied 14 adult patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and 14 adults with Dravet syndrome because both conditions share similar seizure severity. We found that antecollis and parkinsonian gait were significantly more common in the Dravet group, thus suggesting that these features are part of the Dravet syndrome adult phenotype.

Keywords: Dravet; Epilepsy; Epileptic encephalopathy; Lennox-Gastaut syndrome; SCN1A mutation.