Elsevier

Brain and Development

Volume 17, Issue 3, May–June 1995, Pages 169-174
Brain and Development

EEG features and epilepsy in patients with autism

https://doi.org/10.1016/0387-7604(95)00019-8Get rights and content

Abstract

Epileptic seizures are frequently reported (4–32%) in autism. These values are higher than in the normal population of children and adolescents (0.5%). In the literature there is no uniform description of epilepsy in autism. We examined 106 patients with autistic disorder divided into three groups on the basis of presence or absence of EEG paroxysmal abnormalities (PA) and/or epilepsy including febrile convulsions (FC). Our patients presented an autistic syndrome unrelated to clear congenital or acquired encephalopathy. The prevalence of epilepsy and EEG PA was 23.6% and 18.9%, respectively. Significant differences between the three groups appeared for (i) familial antecedents for epilepsy/FC and neurologic and psychiatric diseases (P < 0.004), (ii) a different proportion between the three groups for mental retardation (P < 0.03), (iii) and EEG fast activity (P < 0.04). Our patients showed several types of epilepsy, including idiopathic forms with seizure onset after the age of 10 in 45% of cases. Seizures were mainly partial, not frequent and controllable by anti-epileptic drugs. PA were mostly focal and multifocal and in 45% of cases were typical of benign childhood partial epilepsy with centro-temporal spikes. The higher incidence of epilepsy and EEG PA is apparently not related to organic pre-, peri- and postnatal antecedents or cerebral lesions. On the contrary, genetic factors responsible for autism and epilepsy seem important in the genesis of these two disorders.

Reference (28)

  • VolkmarF. et al.

    Seizure disorders in autism

    J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry

    (1990)
  • KannerL.

    Autistic disturbances of affective contact

    Nerv Child

    (1943)
  • RutterM.

    Autistic children. Infancy of adulthood

    Seminars Psychiatry

    (1970)
  • KannerL.

    Follow-up study of 11 autistic children originally reported in 1943

    J Autism Child Schizophr

    (1971)
  • DeykinE.Y. et al.

    The incidence of seizures among children with autistic symptoms

    Am J Psychiatry

    (1979)
  • RiikonenR. et al.

    Psychiatric disorders in children with earlier infantile spasms

    Dev Med Child Neurol

    (1981)
  • GillbergC. et al.

    Epilepsy presenting as infantile autism? Two case studies

    Neuropediatrics

    (1983)
  • GillbergC.

    Autistic children growing up: problems during puberty and adolescence

    Dev Med Child Neurol

    (1984)
  • GillbergC. et al.

    Outcome and prognostic factors in infantile autism and similar conditions: a population-based study of 46 cases followed through puberty

    J Autism Dev Disord

    (1987)
  • OlssonI. et al.

    Epilepsy in autism and autistic-like conditions. A population-based study

    Arch Neurol

    (1988)
  • GillbergC.

    The treatment of epilepsy in autism

    J Autism Dev Disord

    (1991)
  • WongV.

    Epilepsy in children with autistic spectrum disorder

    J Child Neurol

    (1993)
  • TuchmanR.F. et al.

    Autistic and dysphasic children. II. Epilepsy

    Pediatrics

    (1991)
  • CowanL.D. et al.

    Prevalence of epilepsies in children and adolescents

    Epilepsia

    (1989)
  • Cited by (181)

    • Autism and Epilepsy

      2024, Pediatric Clinics of North America
    • Seizures and Epilepsy in Autism Spectrum Disorder

      2021, Psychiatric Clinics of North America
    • Seizures and Epilepsy in Autism Spectrum Disorder

      2020, Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America
    View all citing articles on Scopus
    View full text