Midazolam or Diazepam Administration During Electroencephalography Helps to Diagnose Subacute Sclerosing Panencephalitis (SSPE)

• Published in: Journal of child neurology Vol. 25; no. 8; pp. 994 - 999
• Main Authors: Yilmaz, Kutluhan, Sahin, Derya Aydin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01-08-2010
• Subjects: Adolescent; Biomarkers - analysis; Biomarkers - cerebrospinal fluid; Brain - drug effects; Brain - pathology; Brain - physiopathology; Child; Child, Preschool; Diazepam - pharmacology; Electroencephalography - drug effects; Electroencephalography - methods; Evoked Potentials - drug effects; Evoked Potentials - physiology; Female; GABA Modulators - pharmacology; Humans; Infant; Male; Midazolam - pharmacology; Predictive Value of Tests; Subacute Sclerosing Panencephalitis - diagnosis; Subacute Sclerosing Panencephalitis - physiopathology; periodic complex; subacute sclerosing panencephalitis; electroencephalography; SSPE; diazepam; midazolam
• ISSN: 0883-0738; 1708-8283
• DOI: 10.1177/0883073809357239

Although diagnostic contribution of intravenous diazepam administration during electroencephalography (EEG) recording in subacute sclerosing panencephalitis has been known, no another drug with less potential side effects has been studied in this procedure. In this study, diazepam is compared with midazolam in 25 subacute sclerosing panencephalitis-diagnosed children and 10 children with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis-suggesting symptoms, normal EEG findings and no certain diagnosis. Neither midazolam nor diazepam affected typical periodic slow-wave complexes. However, in the patients with atypical EEG abnormalities, midazolam, like diazepam, attenuated sharp or sharp-and-slow waves, and therefore made the identification of periodic slow-wave paroxysms easier. In the patients with normal EEGs, both midazolam and diazepam revealed typical periodic complexes on EEG recording in the same 3 patients. Cerebrospinal fluid examination verified the diagnosis of subacute sclerosing panencephalitis. The findings suggest that midazolam or diazepam administration increases the contribution of EEG recording in atypical cases with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis.