SEPs study in infantile benign epilepsies

Sixty-four children with different forms of 'infantile benign epilepsy' (mostly benign partial epilepsy with rolandic spikes) underwent a SEPs study. All the patients had no evidence of focal cerebral lesion and showed a normal neurological examination. Short-latency SEPs demonstrated normal mean latency and amplitude values. Mid or long latency SEPs of abnormally high amplitude were recorded after stimulation of one or more extremities in 17 patients. Such giant responses showed the same reactivity proper to normal long-latency SEPs. These results are discussed in relation to: 1) the De Marco's phenomenon of the tactile evoked spikes in the EEG; 2) the giant SEPs observed in other neurological conditions.