Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy: A clinical and sleep EEG study

Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME) is characterized by myoclonic jerks on aw akening, generalized tonic-clonic seizures (GTCS) and is associated with ab sence seizures in more than one third of cases. Fifteen patients with juven ile myoclonic epilepsy were studied with regard to their clinical profile, EEG data and sleep EEG findings. There was a delay in the diagnosis of WE ( mean of 3.5 years) due to various reasons. Sleep deprivation was the most c ommon precipitating factor for triggering seizures, followed by fatigue. Ro utine EEGs were abnormal in 73.33% of cases only and had misleading finding s in 6.66%. Sleep EEGs were abnormal in 100% of cases with generalized spik es, polyspikes and slow wave discharges. Discharge rates on sleep EEGs typi cally increased significantly during the transition phase (i.e. the asleep to awakening stage) and we consider this to be a specific finding in approp riate clinical setting. Sleep EEGs are a more sensitive and specific tool f or the diagnosis of JME while routine awake EEGs may miss or mislead. (C) 2 001 BEA Trading Ltd.