A rare paroxysmal movement disorder: mixed type of paroxysmal dyskinesia

Paroxysmal dyskinesias are rare, heterogeneous group of disorders characterised by recurrent attacks of involuntary movements. The four classic categories of paroxysmal dyskinesias are kinesigenic, nonkinesigenic, exercise-induced and hypnogenic. There are some patients that do not fit in these four groups of paroxysmal dyskinesia and are termed as "mixed type". We describe a 13-year-old girl who had features of both paroxysmal kinesigenic dyskinesia and paroxysmal nonkinesigenic dyskinesia that was misdiagnosed as refractory epilepsy. She improved substantially with a combination of carbamazepine and clonazepame. It is important to recognize the clinical presentation of paroxysmal dyskinesias and distinguish these movement disorders from other disorders, such as psychogenic disorders and epilepsia, for deciding the treatment and prognosis of the patients. This case highlights the importance of the recognition of a rare paroxysmal movement disorders.