[Paroxysmal disorders during sleep as the debut of epilepsy in children]

Abstract

The authors examined 100 children aged 3 to 14 years with paroxysmal disturbances during sleep, which were the first manifestations of epilepsy. On the basis of a long-term follow up these disturbances were differentiated clinically from similar disorders of non-epileptic nature. The most typical epileptic disturbances occurring during sleep (psychomotor paroxysms, crying, laughter, night fears, nightmarish dreams, psychosensory disorders) had some characteristics in common, namely changes in consciousness, appearance almost at the same time, stereotyry of the manifestations, attendant autonomic disorders, nocturnal enuresis followed by the development of the typical epileptic forms of attacks. The treatment of paroxysmal disturbances was conducted with regard to their clinical structure and the localization of the epileptic focus.