Epileptic syndromes which show continuous spike and wake complexes during slow wave sleep
The association of cognitive and/or behavioral disturbances, epileptic seizures and continuous discharges spike-waves during slow sleep in the EEG, has been described in three epileptic syndromes: continuous spike-wave during slow sleep syndrome (CSWS), Landau-Kleffner syndrome (LKS) or acquired epileptic aphasia, and atypical benign partial epilepsy of childhood (ABPE). We report 13 patients; two of these have been diagnosed of CSWS. four of LKS and seven of ABPE, according to the definition criteria. The main clinical features in each patient are presented here. In all patients, continuous spike-wave discharges were observed for more than > 80% of the total sleep period at some time during the course of the illness. There are many similarities at the age of onset, the occurrence of several types of seizures, the evolution and the electroencephalographic findings in awake state and sleep. It suggests that the CSWS, LKS and ABPE have probably the same pathophysiology and that they are the severe, moderate and benign forms of a single epileptic syndrome, age-related, with continuous spike waves and various neuropsychological and behavioral disturbances. The neuropsychological manifestations depend probably on the localization of the original epileptic focus.