[Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy]

Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy is an special type of epilepsy present in approximately 4 to 10% of patients with epilepsy. This disorder is characterized by an onset in the adolescence and by the presence of various types of generalized seizures: tonic-clonic, typical absences and myoclonic in patients with otherwise normal neuropsychological development. This form of epilepsy was described 30 years ago by Janz, and even today the diagnosis is seldom performed by the general physician as not well as by many neurologists and neurosurgeons. We studied Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy in 20 patients, underscoring its clinical and electroencephalographic profiles and its response to treatment, and established a comparison of these patients with other, existent in the medical literature. The goal of the present work is to call attention to this neurological disorder and to provide useful information for its adequate diagnosis and treatment.