Introduction and Definitions
Reflex epileptic seizures have been known since classical antiquity. Sensitivity to flashing light was described before the development of the EEG and was studied in the 1940s and 1950s when both the EEG and the stroboscopic stimulator became available, but interest in reflex seizures then waned. With the spread of television and then video screen games throughout the world, it became obvious that seizures could be triggered by these displays, and there was a renewal of interest, notably in Europe and in Japan because the 50 Hz screen flicker and 25 Hz pattern of alternating interleaved lines were more effective seizure triggers than their North American counterparts. The current proposal to define reflex epilepsy syndromes and reflex seizures (Engel 2001) restricts reflex epilepsy syndromes to those “… in which all epileptic seizures are precipitated by sensory stimuli. Reflex seizures that occur in focal and generalized epilepsy syndromes that are also...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsReferences
Binnie CD (2004) Evidence of reflex epilepsy on functional systems in the brain and “generalised epilepsy”. In: Wolf P, Inoue Y, Zifkin B (eds) Reflex epilepsies: Progress in understanding. John Libbey Eurotext, Montrouge, pp 7–14
Blume WT, Luders HO, Mizrahi E, Tassinari C, van Emde Boas W, Engel J Jr (2001) Glossary of descriptive terminology for ictal semiology: report of the ILAE task force on classification and terminology. Epilepsia 42:1212–1218
Clementi A (1929) Stricninizzazione della sfera corticale visiva ed epilessia sperimentale da stimoli luminosi. Arch Fisiol 27:356–387
de Kovel CG, Pinto D, Tauer U, Lorenz S, Muhle H, Leu C, Neubauer BA, Hempelmann A, Callenbach PM, Scheffer IE, Berkovic SF, Rudolf G, Striano P, Siren A, Baykan B, Sander T, Lindhout D, Kasteleijn-Nolst Trenité DG, Stephani U, Koeleman BP (2010) Whole-genome linkage scan for epilepsy-related photosensitivity: a mega-analysis. Epilepsy Res 89:286–294
Dibbens LM, Ekberg J, Taylor I, Hodgson BL, Conroy SJ, Lensink IL, Kumar S, Zielinski MA, Harkin LA, Sutherland GR, Adams DJ, Berkovic SF, Scheffer IE, Mulley JC, Poronnik P (2007) NEDD4–2 as a potential candidate susceptibility gene for epileptic photosensitivity. Genes Brain Behav 6:750–755
Engel J Jr (2001) A proposed diagnostic scheme for people with epileptic seizures and with epilepsy: report of the ILEA Task Force on Classification and Terminology. Epilepsia 42:796–803
Engel J Jr (2006) Report of the ILAE Classification Core Group. Epilepsia 47:1558–1568
Ferlazzo E, Zifkin BG, Andermann E, Andermann F (2005) Cortical triggers in generalized reflex seizures and epilepsies. Brain 128:700–710
Guerrini R, Dravet C, Genton P, Bureau M, Bonanni P, Ferrari AR, Roger J (1995) Idiopathic photosensitive occipital lobe epilepsy. Epilepsia 36:883–891
Harding G, Harding P, Wilkins A (2008) Wind turbines, flicker, and photosensitive epilepsy: Characterizing the flashing that may precipitate seizures and optimizing guidelines to prevent them. Epilepsia 49:1095–1098
Inoue Y, Zifkin B (2004) Praxis induction and thinking induction: one or two mechanisms? In: Wolf P, Inoue Y, Zifkin B (eds) Reflex epilepsies: Progress in understanding. John Libbey Eurotext, Montrouge, pp 41–55
Kho KH, van den Bergh WM, Spetgens WPJ, Leijten FSS (2006) Figuring out drawing-induced epilepsy. Neurology 66:723–726
Matsuoka H, Takahashi T, Sasaki M, Matsumoto K, Yoshida S, Numachi Y, Saito H, Ueno T, Sato M (2000) Neuropsychological EEG activation in patients with epilepsy. Brain 123:318–330
Michelucci R, Mecarelli O, Bovo G, Bisulli F, Testoni S, Striano P, Striano S, Tinuper P, Nobile C (2007) A de novo LGI1 mutation causing idiopathic partial epilepsy with telephone-induced seizures. Neurology 68:2150–2151
Mulley JC, Scheffer IE, Harkin LA, Berkovic SF, Dibbens LM (2005) Susceptibility genes for complex epilepsy. Human Mol Genet 14(2):R243–R249
Parra J, Lopes da Silva FH, Stroink H, Kalitzin S (2007) Is colour modulation an independent factor in human visual photosensitivity? Brain 130:1679–1689
Pinto D, Kasteleijn-Nolst Trenité DG, Cordell HJ, Mattheisen M, Strauch K, Lindhout D, Koeleman BP (2007) Explorative two-locus linkage analysis suggests a multiplicative interaction between the 7q32 and 16p13 myoclonic seizures-related photosensitivity loci. Genet Epidemiol 31:42–50
Salek-Haddadi A, Mayer T, Hamandi K, Symms M, Josephs O, Fluegel D, Woermann F, Richardson MP, Noppeney U, Wolf P, Koepp MJ (2009) Imaging seizure activity: a combined EEG/EMG-fMRI study in reading epilepsy. Epilepsia 50:256–264
Takahashi Y, Fujiwara T (2004) Effectiveness of broadcasting guidelines for photosensitive seizure prevention. Neurology 62:990–993
Wilkins A (1995) Visual stress. Oxford University Press, Oxford
Wilkins AJ, Bonanni P, Porciatti V, Guerrini R (2004) Physiology of human photosensitivity. Epilepsia 45(Supp 1):7–13
Wolf P (ed) (1994) Regional manifestation of idiopathic epilepsy. Introduction. In: Epileptic seizures and syndromes. John Libbey, London, pp 265–267
Zifkin B, Andermann E, Andermann F (2005) Mechanisms, genetics, and pathogenesis of juvenile myoclonic epilepsy. Curr Opin Neurol 18:147–153
Zifkin B, Andermann F (2006) Epilepsy with reflex seizures. In: Wyllie E, Gupta A, Lachhwani DK (eds) Treatment of epilepsy, 4th edn. Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, Philadelphia, pp 463–475
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2010 Springer-Verlag London Limited
About this entry
Cite this entry
Zifkin, B.G. (2010). Pathophysiology of Reflex Epileptic Seizures. In: Panayiotopoulos, C.P. (eds) Atlas of Epilepsies. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-84882-128-6_33
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-84882-128-6_33
Publisher Name: Springer, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-84882-127-9
Online ISBN: 978-1-84882-128-6
eBook Packages: MedicineReference Module Medicine