Clinical characteristics of psychogenic nonepileptic seizures across the lifespan: An international retrospective study.

PURPOSE: Previous studies from a few countries have reported semiological differences in younger children compared with adolescents or adults with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNESs). This study tested the hypothesis that semiological, demographic, and historical risk factors vary with different ages of PNES onset in a large cohort from different countries. METHODS: In this retrospective study, we investigated patients consecutively referred for PNES, who were admitted to epilepsy monitoring units in Iran, Brazil, Venezuela, Canada, Argentina, and USA. Age, gender, age at seizure onset, seizure semiology, and factors predisposing to PNES (abuse, stressors) were documented according to routine diagnostic practices at each center. Participants were grouped according to their age at onset (i.e., childhood, adolescence, or adulthood). RESULTS: A total of 448 patients were studied. Female predominance was associated with adolescent- (85/122, 70%) and adult-onset (190/270, 70%) but not in childhood-onset PNES (28/56, 50%) (p = 0.011). Event frequency in the month preceding the diagnosis was higher in the childhood- [x¯â€¯= 50, standard deviation (sd) = 82, p = 0.025] versus adolescent- (x¯â€¯= 24, sd = 36) or adult-onset groups (x¯â€¯= 29, sd = 61). Significant between-group differences were observed for generalized body movements (p = 0.0001) and ictal injury (p = 0.027), suggesting more severe ictal presentations in adult-onset PNES compared with younger ages. Adult-onset patients were also more likely to be taking an unnecessary antiepileptic medication (p = 0.010). CONCLUSION: While PNES may present at any age, there appear to be notable differences across the lifespan with respect to some of the clinical characteristics. Further international and cross-cultural studies may reveal other interesting characteristics of PNES.

Adult-onset psychogenic nonepileptic seizures: A multicenter international study.

PURPOSE: The aim of this multicenter international cross-cultural study was to compare clinical variables in a large sample of people with adult-onset psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES). METHODS: In this retrospective study, we evaluated persons with documented PNES, who were older than 16 years of age at the onset, from four countries (i.e., Iran, Brazil, Venezuela, and Argentina) regarding their age, gender, PNES semiology, and possible predisposing factors. RESULTS: We included 389 patients (244 from Iran, 66 from Brazil, 51 from Venezuela, and 28 from Argentina). Age at diagnosis was 32 ±â€¯9 years (range: 17-64 years), and age at the onset of seizures was 27 ±â€¯8 years (range: 17-49 years). There was a female predominance in all countries. The demographic characteristics and factors associated with PNES were similar among the countries. However, there were significant semiological differences among the countries. CONCLUSION: This study corroborates the notion that PNES share more similarities than differences cross-culturally and across international borders. However, the background determined by cultural, ethnic, and religious differences may influence the semiology of PNES. Further cross-cultural studies involving more than two continents may advance our understanding of PNES.

Sex differences in demographic and clinical characteristics of psychogenic nonepileptic seizures: A retrospective multicenter international study.

PURPOSE: Sex-related differences have been reported in patients with neurological and psychiatric disorders. It is also plausible to assume that there might be differences between females and males with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES). METHODS: In this retrospective study, we investigated patients with PNES, who were admitted to the epilepsy monitoring units at centers in Iran, the USA, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, and Venezuela. Age, sex, age at seizure onset, seizure semiology, factors potentially predisposing to PNES, and video-electroencephalography recording of all patients were registered routinely. RESULTS: Four hundred and fifty-one patients had PNES-only and were eligible for inclusion; 305 patients (67.6%) were females. We executed a logistic regression analysis, evaluating significant variables in univariate analyses (i.e., age, age at onset, aura, presence of historical sexual or physical abuse, and family dysfunction). The only variables retaining significance were historical sexual abuse (p = 0.005) and presence of aura (p = 0.01); physical abuse was borderline significant (p = 0.05) (all three were more prevalent among females). CONCLUSION: Similarities between females and males outweigh the differences with regard to the demographic and clinical characteristics of PNES. However, notable differences are that females more often report lifetime adverse experiences (sexual and probably physical abuse) and auras. While social, psychological, and genetic factors may interact with lifetime adverse experiences in the inception of PNES, the link is not yet clear. This is an interesting avenue for future studies.

Pediatric-onset psychogenic nonepileptic seizures: A retrospective international multicenter study.

PURPOSE: We compared various clinical characteristics of pediatric-onset psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) between patients from five countries. The purpose of this study was to advance our understanding of pediatric-onset PNES cross-culturally. METHODS: In this retrospective study, we compared consecutive patients with PNES with an age at onset of 16 years and younger from epilepsy monitoring units in Iran, Brazil, the USA, Canada, and Venezuela. Age, gender, age at seizure onset, seizure semiology, predisposing factors, and video-EEG recordings of all patients were extracted. Pearson Chi-Square, one-way ANOVA and Bonferroni correction tests were used for statistical analyses. RESULTS: Two hundred twenty-nine patients were studied (83 from Iran, 50 from Brazil, 39 from Canada, 30 from the USA, and 27 from Venezuela). Mean age at the onset of seizures was 12.1 ±â€¯3.2 years (range: 4-16 years). The sex ratio of the patients was 1.83: 1 (148 females and 81 males). Clinical characteristics of pediatric-onset PNES showed some significant differences among the nations. However, factors associated with pediatric-onset PNES in these five nations were similar. CONCLUSION: This study underscores how international cross-cultural studies can make important contributions to our understanding of PNES. Patients with pediatric-onset PNES from different countries were similar on many risk factors associated with PNES. This suggests universality in many features of PNES. However, intriguing differences were also noted with regard to seizure semiology, which might be the result of cultural factors.