[Idiopathic catastrophic epileptic encephalopathy: an untreatable convulsive malady in infancy].

AIM: To present a case of catastrophic childhood epileptic syndrome with multifocal status epilepticus.

CASE REPORT: A 4 years old boy with a multifocal status epilepticus of unknown origin which could only be controlled along some days with thiopentone enough to cause electrical suppression, and relapsed again after having stopped it.

CONCLUSION

But for very high doses of barbiturates, any antiepileptic drug could control or improve the convulsions. MRI, initially normal, was followed by a progressive cerebral and cerebellar atrophy and the boy survived with heavy neurological secuelae.