Benign neonatal sleep myoclonus

Abstract

Benign neonatal sleep myoclonus is a disorder characterised by abnormal episodic jerky movements, which occur exclusively during sleep. When the history is suggestive of the diagnosis, and physical examination and basic investigations are normal, a confident diagnosis can usually be reached, and other potentially more serious neonatal seizure disorders excluded. This allows the doctor to reassure the parents as to the prognosis--the condition resolves spontaneously within the first year, most often within the first three months, with no sequelae. We describe four patients who presented to one unit with this condition.