BEHAVIORAL DISORDERS, MEMORY DISORDERS AND TEMPORAL EPILEPSY: A CASE REPORT AT SAINT JEAN DE DIEU HOSPITAL IN THIES

Résumé

The clinical manifestations of focal epilepsy depend on the functional specialization of the part of the brain which is the seat of the ignition. The temporal lobe, housing key structures of memorization (hippocampus and amygdala) and in close connection with other structures of the rhinencephalon (brain of instinctive, affective and emotional behaviors), can then be the source of behavioral disorders and memory in relation to its conflagration. We report the case of a 21-year-old girl who presented with recurrent and brief episodes of incoherent talk and inappropriate behavior. She also had memory problems, as well as generalized tonic-clonic seizures preceded by an ascending epigastric sensation. The waking and sleeping EEG tracings were normal, while the brain MRI showed right temporo-hippocampal atrophy. The diagnosis of temporal lobe epilepsy was retained and treatment with carbamazepine instituted. The evolution was favorable with a considerable reduction in seizures. Temporal lobe epilepsy can be confusing, but a good knowledge of the functional specialization of the temporal lobe can help straighten out the diagnosis.