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Alice-in-Wonderland syndrome--a case-based update and long-term outcome in nine children
Andrea Weidenfeld1, Peter Borusiak
1Wagener-Stiftung für Sozialpädiatrie, Heusnerstr. 40, 42283, Wuppertal, Germany.
Purpose:
There are some reports of so-called Alice-in-Wonderland syndrome mostly concerning differential diagnosis, association with a variety of infectious diseases and even some case reports on functional imaging. Long-term data are rare.
Methods:
Nine boys aged 6 to 11 years that had been diagnosed with Alice-in-Wonderland syndrome between 2003 and 2008 were contacted for a long-term follow-up study in summer, 2009, with a mean follow-up of 4.6 years.
Results:
At the time of the follow-up study, all children were in good general and mental health. Symptoms of Alice-in-Wonderland syndrome had ceased within weeks or months. In two patients, episodes of metamorphopsia returned after a symptom-free latency of 3 years and 1 year, respectively. Five children had a family history of migraine or epilepsy. In one case, the father was reported to have experienced similar symptoms when he was a child.
Conclusion:
Our follow-up study shows that Alice-in-Wonderland is most likely a benign, self-terminating childhood condition, although occasional recurrences of symptoms are possible.
