PURPOSE The aetiology of adult onset epilepsy remains unascertained in a significant proportion of patients. Antibodies directed against neuronal antigens have been suggested to have a potential pathogenic role in some cases of epilepsy. We describe a series of patients with adult onset epilepsy in whom antibodies to glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD Abs) have been identified. METHODS All pati...

This manuscript reviews epilepsy, seizures and/or subclinical electrical discharges (SEDs) in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), including prevalence of epilepsy and SEDs, clinical characteristics of this ASD subgroup and seizure types. The prevalence of epilepsy in ASD is higher than the prevalence of epilepsy in typically developing individuals and depends on age and gender as w...

We thank Pion and Boussinesq for the initiative to reanalyze the data of their study from an onchocerciasis endemic area in Central Cameroon that, in part, had been published in 2002. Their finding of a significant association between epilepsy and the presence of subcutaneous nodules corresponds well with our own results obtained in a similar setting in West Uganda. As a difference to many stud...

BACKGROUND Despite advances in antiepileptic drug (AED) development, only 50 to 70% of epileptic patients are controlled with pharmacotherapy. With a point prevalence of 0.5 to 1.0% of the United States population afflicted with epilepsy, there are estimated to be hundreds of thousands of epileptics who are not seizure free on medical therapy. At least one-third of these patients are likely can...

Although many different medical and surgical treatment options for epilepsy exist, approximately 30% of epilepsy patients remain poorly controlled. For those patients who are refractory to medical treatment, epilepsy surgery often provides meaningful improvement. However, when surgical resection of epileptic foci cannot be offered or failed, combined administration of AEDs or the application of...