ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to assess the frequency of occurrence of a unilateral mu rhythm and the associated neuroimaging findings on dedicated epilepsy protocol brain MRI. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the EEG reports database at the American University of Beirut Medical Center between 2011 and 2014 searching for the presence of a unilateral mu rhythm. For patients with a unilateral mu rhythm, we recorded the patients' demographics, number of EEGs performed, characteristics of the mu activity, and the findings on the epilepsy protocol brain MRIs. RESULTS: A total of 7986 patients underwent 9,509 EEG between 2011 and 2014. Four patients (0.05%) aged between 19 and 55 years had evidence of a unilateral mu rhythm. Three patients were diagnosed with localization-related epilepsy and one with syncope. The brain MRIs showed cortical lesions involving the parietal cortex, ipsilateral to the unilateral mu rhythm in the three patients with epilepsy. CONCLUSIONS: A unilateral mu rhythm is a rare phenomenon on the scalp EEG that should prompt a search for an ipsilateral lesion, even in the absence of additional EEG abnormalities.
Subject(s)
Brain Waves/physiology , Cerebral Cortex/diagnostic imaging , Electroencephalography , Epilepsy/diagnostic imaging , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Adult , Brain Mapping/methods , Cerebral Cortex/physiopathology , Epilepsy/physiopathology , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Neuroimaging/methods , Retrospective Studies , Young AdultABSTRACT
AIM: The aim of this study was to determine the frequency and characteristics of secondary enuresis in children initiated on valproate treatment. METHOD: This was a prospective study conducted in children aged 5 to 12 years with suspected newly diagnosed epilepsy and maintained on valproate for at least 1 month. Adverse events spontaneously reported by parents were recorded at each follow-up visit. In addition, we specifically asked about enuresis and other side effects known to occur with valproate treatment. We assessed the frequency of enuresis and its association with a number of variables. RESULTS: Seventy-two children (43 males and 29 females) with a mean age of 8 years 7 months (range 5-12y) were included in this study. Secondary enuresis developed in 17 (24%) of these children after, on average, 19.8 days of exposure to valproate. The data obtained from a multivariate analysis indicate that age was the only significant factor in predicting the development of enuresis. Enuresis ceased in all children after discontinuation of valproate use, and in 10 out of 11 children still on the drug. INTERPRETATION: Secondary enuresis is a common adverse event associated with valproate use in children, which is not usually spontaneously reported and is reversible in most cases.
