Patient's question:
The child had 2 episodes of convulsions during sleep. Local diagnosis was epilepsy. They want to come to Beijing for a clear diagnosis and to determine a treatment plan. What kind of tests can be done to identify it?Doctor's answer:
Alright, an electroencephalogram (EEG) showing epileptic waves (i.e., paroxysmal discharges) is an important basis for diagnosing epilepsy. The diagnostic criteria for epilepsy include: first, recurrent epilepsy symptoms; second, the presence of epileptic waves on an EEG; and third, effective response to antiepileptic drug treatment. However, an EEG is not the sole criterion, as the EEG may be normal in some epilepsy patients. Even with a 24-hour long-term EEG, the positive detection rate is only 80%.