A Case of Palatal Myoclonus Caused by Trauma

ABSTRACT

Palatal myoclonus is a rare disorder described as separable from the general group of myoclonias as a clinical and antomical entity result from lesion involving the dentato-rubro-olivary pathway and the inferior olivary nucleus. This 21-year-old man was injured in a fall from the roof. On admission to the hospital, he had cerebral contusion and occipital bone fracture with other multiple trauma. On the eleventh day after the injury, he began showing rhythmic, 150/min, bilateral contraction of the palate. This movement disorder has hitherto been considered untreatable when idiopathic origin. But several reports describe improvement of palatal myoclonus during sleep or medical treatment. In this case, palatal myoclonus was absent during sleep and it responded well to oral administration of clonazepam. We report a case of palatal myoclonus which developed after trauma for the first time in Korea.