Recurrent frontal status epilepticus with polymorphic clinical features. A case report.

A patient who, two years after the surgical excision of a right frontal astrocytoma, presented with recurrent episodes of Partial Status Epilepticus of long duration is described. Ictal manifestations are initially inconspicuous from a clinical standpoint, but are accompanied by a marked interictal impairment of consciousness. The EEGs show a persistent depression of the background activity and very frequent subclinical right frontal discharges. Successively, seizures become more evident with polymorphic features (versive, oculoclonic, somatomotor, autonomic, automatic, laughing manifestations). The difficulties of an early definition of the clinical picture and the diagnostic importance of the EEG study are stressed, together with other peculiar features (polymorphism of seizures, difficulties of management, progressive mental impairment occurring after every episode of Status Epilepticus).