Rolandic epilepsy: clinical and electroencephalographic features.

Benign rolandic epilepsy (BRE) is a common seizure disorder confined solely to children. The disorder is marked clinically by nocturnal generalized tonic-clonic seizures and diurnal seizures consisting of simple partial seizures consisting of brief unilateral facial clonic activity, dysphasia, and drooling. The EEG abnormalities are unique, consisting of generally high amplitude, centrotemporal spikes that are activated by sleep. The seizures typically begin in the first decade and almost always stop by age 16 years. The seizures are usually infrequent although clusters of seizures do occur. When the physician elects to treat, the seizures are usually easily controlled.