[Etiology and clinical features of epilepsia partialis continua: an analysis of six cases]

To investigate the etiology and clinical features of epilepsia partialis continua (EPC) in children.

A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical features, diagnosis and treatment of six children with EPC, and the clinical and laboratory features and prognosis were compared between the children with different etiologies.

There were five girls and one boy, with an onset age ranging from one year and seven months to nine years. Two were diagnosed with Rasmussen encephalitis, one was diagnosed with focal cortical dysplasia, one was diagnosed with Alpers syndrome caused by POLG gene mutation, one was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome, and one was diagnosed with tuberculous meningitis. The latter two children had the predisposing factors for acute encephalopathy induced by status epilepticus and craniocerebral operation during the onset of EPC, while the other four children had natural progression of EPC. All the children had focal seizures except EPC, and symptoms included automatism, bilateral asymmetric tonic seizure, deflection, complex motor, and autonomic symptoms, with disturbance of consciousness in some children. EPC often lasted for several days or even several months. All children had abnormalities on head MRI, including local abnormal signal, cortex swelling, diffusive brain atrophy or brain atrophy at one side, local cortex thickening, and cortical necrosis. Head PET/CT scan was performed for three children and found local hypermetabolism or co-existence of hypermetabolism and hypometabolism. All the children had abnormalities on electroencephalography (EEG), with cerebral, hemispheric, or diffusive distribution of abnormal electrical activities, and during the onset of EPC, some EEG changes were recognizable and some were difficult to identify. All the children with EPC were not sensitive to antiepileptic drugs. EPC was relatively self-limiting in the child with Angelman syndrome. The child with focal cortical dysplasia underwent resection of epileptic foci and had good postoperative control, without neurological dysfunction. The child with Rasmussen encephalitis underwent functional hemispherectomy and had no attack after surgery, with neurological dysfunction. The child with Alpers syndrome had the worst prognosis.

EPC is a special type of epileptic seizures. Immune inflammation and metabolic etiologies are the main causes of EPC in children, and the selection of treatment regimens, treatment outcome, and prognosis depend on etiology.