Use of multiple dipole analysis for the classification of benign rolandic epilepsy

The clinical literature has suggested that while the clinical features and presentation of benign rolandic epilepsy in children (BREC) are known, the neuronal mechanism of the epileptic focus is poorly understood. Classification of clinical subtypes is usually made by determining whether there are supplementary clinical signs of brain damage, in which case the epilepsy is classified as non-benign or "atypical". Studies of EEG findings in BREC have suggested that the source of the epilepsy is in the Rolandic fissure. We investigated dipole source modelling in 24 children, comparing the results of one and two dipole models. The results indicate that atypical BREC patients have a more complex distribution of dipoles and that single dipole fits may be more predictive of typical BREC than multiple dipole fits. The implications of these results are discussed.