OBJECTIVE: To recognize abdominal epilepsy in adults. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Case report. RESULTS: Case 1: A 21-year-old woman with DM type I presented with a 2-month history involving four episodes of severe abdominal pain and vomiting, each of which lasted four to five days. She had a recurrence every two weeks. The EEG revealed 'spike and wave ' and she was started an intravenous phenytoin that resolved the symptoms. Case 2: A 20-year-old woman with DM type I was admitted with a 2-month history of recurring severe left upper quadrant pain associated with occasional nausea but no vomiting. She experienced two more episodes of generalized tonic-clonic seizures and was treated with 300 mg phenytoin given orally The abdominal pains gradually subsided and she was symptom-free within two days. An EEG showed frequent sharp waves. She was treated with 10 mg intravenous diazepam and her symptoms and sharp waves disappeared within two minutes. Case 3: A 46-year-old man with DM type I was admitted with a four-month history of recurring severe epigastric pain and vomiting. His physical examination, laboratory tests, and extensive investigation for a primary GI disorder revealed nothing unusual. The EEG revealed spike and wave and he was treated with intravenous AED (phenytoin) loading after which the symptoms disappeared. CONCLUSION: Physicians should consider abdominal epilepsy in diabetics with recurrent, intractable abdominal pain in whom extensive investigations for primary gastrointestinal (GI) disorders are unremarkable.
OBJECTIVE: To recognize abdominal epilepsy in adults. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Case report. RESULTS: Case 1: A 21-year-old woman with DM type I presented with a 2-month history involving four episodes of severe abdominal pain and vomiting, each of which lasted four to five days. She had a recurrence every two weeks. The EEG revealed 'spike and wave ' and she was started an intravenous phenytoin that resolved the symptoms. Case 2: A 20-year-old woman with DM type I was admitted with a 2-month history of recurring severe left upper quadrant pain associated with occasional nausea but no vomiting. She experienced two more episodes of generalized tonic-clonic seizures and was treated with 300 mg phenytoin given orally The abdominal pains gradually subsided and she was symptom-free within two days. An EEG showed frequent sharp waves. She was treated with 10 mg intravenous diazepam and her symptoms and sharp waves disappeared within two minutes. Case 3: A 46-year-old man with DM type I was admitted with a four-month history of recurring severe epigastric pain and vomiting. His physical examination, laboratory tests, and extensive investigation for a primary GI disorder revealed nothing unusual. The EEG revealed spike and wave and he was treated with intravenous AED (phenytoin) loading after which the symptoms disappeared. CONCLUSION: Physicians should consider abdominal epilepsy in diabetics with recurrent, intractable abdominal pain in whom extensive investigations for primary gastrointestinal (GI) disorders are unremarkable.