Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological diseases, and symptomatic epilepsy patients are the main group of epilepsy patients, and their etiologies mainly include structural, infectious, metabolic and autoimmune, and the seizures caused by each etiology may have different degrees of impact on the quality of life of patients. The purpose of this article is to review the research on the quality of life of patients with symptomatic epilepsy caused by structural and infectious etiologies, including cerebrovascular diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, brain tumors, traumatic brain injuries and neurocysticercosis, in order to help clinicians understand the quality of life of patients with symptomatic epilepsy and benefit patients in clinical practice.
Objective To investigate the clinical features and long-term prognosis of children with symptomatic epilepsy complicated by encephalofacial angiomatosis. Methods A total of 38 children with Sturge-Weber syndrome (SWS) complicated by symptomatic epilepsy who were diagnosed and treated in the Children's Hospital of Soochow University from January 2011 to June 2020 were selected as the research objects. Their clinical data were collected, and long-term follow-up studies were carried out. Results The clinical manifestations of SWS complicated by symptomatic epilepsy were diverse, with focal seizures being the most common (86.84%). Abnormalities were found in the cranial CT and MRI of all 38 children, mainly involving the parietal lobe and occipital lobe. Among the 38 children undergoing electroencephalogram (EEG) examinations, 31 had abnormal results. Among the abnormal EEGs, the background waves were asymmetrical on the left and right sides in 28 cases (the amplitude on the affected side was lower), 8 cases showed unilateral discharges to varying degrees, and 1 case showed bilateral high-amplitude discharges. Among the 38 cases, 2 did not use antiepileptic drugs, and 36 were treated with antiepileptic drugs, mainly with oxcarbazepine, topiramate, and levetiracetam. Eventually, 2 children were given surgical treatment due to drug-resistant epilepsy. Among the 38 cases, 19 (50.00%) were diagnosed with refractory epilepsy. Epilepsy occurring before the age of 2 are prone to develop into refractory epilepsy (P<0.05). All 38 children had sequelae to varying degrees, including 25 cases (65.79%) with severe sequelae and 13 cases (34.21%) with milder sequelae. Moreover, the earlier the age of epilepsy onset in children, the more likely it was to leave severe sequelae in the later stage (P=0.001). Conclusion Children with Sturge-Weber syndrome complicated by symptomatic epilepsy mainly have focal seizures. About half of them suffer from refractory epilepsy. The earlier the age of epileptic seizures, the more likely it is to develop into refractory epilepsy. The long-term prognosis of such children is rather poor. Among the 38 cases followed up, all had sequelae of varying degrees.