Centro-temporal spikes in non-epileptic children: A long-term follow up

Objective: This study was undertaken in order to determine the natural evolution of centro-temporal spikes (CTS) in a healthy paediatric population. Methodology: Forty children and adolescents (mean age +/- SD: 9.9 +/- 4.1 years) with non-epileptic disturbances (tics, headache, paver nocturnus, vertigo, etc), who showed CTS during routine EEG recordings were studied. No patient suffered from seizures. A clinical and electroencephalographic follow-up of at least 5.5 years was carried out in all subjects, Results: At the follow-up examination, 33 of the 40 cases (82.5%) had no CTS or other epileptic discharges in awake and sleep EEGs, while six subjects continued to show CTS discharges in sleep EEG, Among those subjects who showed persistence of CTS in sleep EEG, rolandic epilepsy developed in two cases, while all other subjects continued to be seizure free. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that CTS can be present in non-epileptic children and adolescents; in the majority of subjects this EEG abnormality disappears spontaneously and only a small percentage of subjects who have persistence of this pattern develops rolandic epilepsy.