Channels and disease: past, present, and future.

E pisodic neurological phenotypes make up an interesting and important group of diseases affecting humans. These include disorders of the skeletal and cardiac muscles, peripheral nerves, and brain. They range from episodic weakness syndromes to rare paroxysmal movement disorders. More common episodic phenomena include cardiac arrhythmias, epilepsy syndromes, and headache. Molecular characterization of these disorders is shedding light on their pathophysiologic features and will ultimately lead to better diagnosis and treatment of patients.