A potential cause of adolescent onset Dyke-Davidoff-Masson syndrome: A case report

Dyke-Davidoff-Masson syndrome (DDMS) is a rare syndrome commonly occurring in children and characterized by cerebral hemiatrophy, hypertrophy of the skull, epilepsy, and mental retardation. However, few have been reported in China, especially in teenagers. This case investigated its possible cause and explored a relative effective solution.

A 24-year-old female came to department having experienced recurrent seizures for 12 years.

DDMS was diagnosed from its manifestations, biochemistry indexes, and imaging (computed tomography angiography, magnetic resonance venography, and so on).

Several drugs are used to treat the disease, including valproate, carbamazepine, topiramate, and ginkgo biloba extract.

Under the medicine treatment of magnesium valproate with carbamazepine, the patient experienced partial seizures approximately once per month that lasted 30 to 60 seconds each without any complications observed during a follow-up period of 24 months.

The imaging and clinical features of DDMS in this teenager were similar to those in classic infantile-onset cases. A potential cause of the disease could be brain trauma, which impaired the middle cerebral artery and reduced cerebral blood supply, leading to epilepsy and hemiatrophy.

It was concluded early diagnosis and pharmacotherapy are the keys to preventing intellectual decline in DDMS patients. Moreover, the combination of magnesium valproate and carbamazepine could significantly reduce the frequency and duration of seizures, despite not eliminating them completely.