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Nonepileptic Psychogenic Status Epilepticus

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Status Epilepticus

Part of the book series: Current Clinical Neurology ((CCNEU))

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Abstract

Psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) are a common and debilitating mimic of epileptic seizures. Prolonged PNES, lasting >20 min, are categorized as nonepileptic psychogenic status epilepticus (NEPS) and constitute the most important differential diagnosis for status epilepticus. NEPS is frequently mistaken for status epilepticus, and this has resulted in serious iatrogenic harm and even mortality. It is therefore essential to consider and rule out the diagnosis of NEPS in any patient presenting with apparent status epilepticus. Diagnosis can involve clinical history, seizure semiology, and other supportive tests, with video-electroencephalogram as the gold standard. This chapter reviews the etiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of NEPS. The differential diagnoses of mimics of convulsive and nonconvulsive status epilepticus, other than NEPS, are also reviewed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 75 Francis Street, Boston, MA, 02115, USA

    Benjamin Tolchin & Barbara A. Dworetzky

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  1. Benjamin Tolchin
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  2. Barbara A. Dworetzky
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Correspondence to Benjamin Tolchin .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Comprehensive Epilepsy Center, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

    Frank W. Drislane

  2. Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

    Peter W. Kaplan MBBS

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Tolchin, B., Dworetzky, B.A. (2018). Nonepileptic Psychogenic Status Epilepticus. In: Drislane, F., Kaplan MBBS, P. (eds) Status Epilepticus. Current Clinical Neurology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-58200-9_4

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-58198-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-58200-9

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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