Landau-Kleffner syndrome: much more than aphasia and epilepsy
Landau-Kleffner is currently considered a rare syndrome that combines acquired aphasia and epilepsy in children. We present two cases and discuss evidence in the literature that suggest how this syndrome is actually only part of a more generalized situation in which epilepsy (a paroxysmal disorder) produces or is accompanied by a prolonged or permanent derangement of neuronal circuits responsible for higher cortical functions, including language. This reappraisal of the identity of the syndrome could have interesting consequences not only for the study of epilepsy but also for the study of higher cortical functions.