Cortical mechanisms mediating asterixis.

We describe a patient with chronic renal failure who suffered multifocal action-induced jerks. Electromyography (EMG) recorded the typical silence of asterixis. Back-averaging the EEG activity preceding the EMG silent periods in the forearm showed a biphasic wave antedating the asterixis by 23 ms. Somatosensory evoked potentials (SEPs) after median nerve stimulation were pathologically enlarged on both hemispheres. Brain-mapping of the biphasic wave preceding asterixis and the giant SEPs indicated a common origin in the sensorimotor cortex. This observation provides further documentation of a cortical origin for some types of asterixis in humans.