Electroencephalogram Abnormalities and Epilepsy in Autism Spectrum Disorders: Clinical and Electroencephalogram Findings
- 29 October 2021
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Georg Thieme Verlag KG in Journal of Pediatric Epilepsy
- Vol. 11 (02), 039-044
- https://doi.org/10.1055/s-0041-1736557
Abstract
It has been known for several decades that epilepsy and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are related to each other. Epilepsy frequently accompanies ASD. The purpose of this study was to investigate relationship between clinical and electroencephalogram (EEG) findings in ASD patients and to identify EEG characteristics that may create a disposition to epilepsy in ASD by examining differences in clinical and EEG findings between patients diagnosed with ASD without epilepsy and ASD with epilepsy. A total of 102 patients aged 2 to 18 years and diagnosed with ASD based on Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5) diagnostic criteria between January 2017 and June 2019 were included in the study. Patients were assigned into two groups: (1) ASD with epilepsy and (2) ASD without epilepsy. Clinical findings were retrieved from patients' files, and EEG findings from first EEG records in the EEG laboratory at the time of diagnosis. EEG findings were defined as central, parietal, frontal, temporal, or generalized, depending on the location of rhythmic discharges. The incidence of epilepsy in our ASD patients was 33.7% and that of febrile convulsion was 4%. Generalized motor seizures were the most common seizure type. Epileptic discharges most commonly derived from the central and frontal regions. These abnormalities, especially frontal and central rhythmic discharges, may represent a precursor for the development of epilepsy in ASD patients. Received: 30 June 2021 Accepted: 04 September 2021 Publication Date: 29 October 2021 (online) © 2021. Thieme. All rights reserved. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Rüdigerstraße 14, 70469 Stuttgart, GermanyKeywords
This publication has 24 references indexed in Scilit:
- Correlation between EEG abnormalities and symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD)Brain & Development, 2010
- EEG abnormalities and epilepsy in autistic spectrum disorders: Clinical and familial correlatesEpilepsy & Behavior, 2010
- Epilepsy in Autism is Associated with Intellectual Disability and Gender: Evidence from a Meta-AnalysisBiological Psychiatry, 2008
- Autism and epilepsy: A retrospective follow-up studyBrain & Development, 2007
- Childhood autism and associated comorbiditiesBrain & Development, 2007
- Epilepsy in autism spectrum disordersEuropean Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 2006
- Frequency of epileptiform EEG abnormalities in a sequential screening of autistic patients with no known clinical epilepsy from 1996 to 2005Epilepsy & Behavior, 2006
- Epilepsy in Young Adults with Autism: A Prospective Population‐based Follow‐up Study of 120 Individuals Diagnosed in ChildhoodEpilepsia, 2005
- EEG features and epilepsy in patients with autismBrain & Development, 1995
- Outcome and prognostic factors in infantile autism and similar conditions: A population-based study of 46 cases followed through pubertyJournal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 1987