Nocturnal paroxysmal dystonia.

Nocturnal paroxysmal dystoniaSir: Recently Lugaresi, et all described twelve patients with a remarkable and uni- form clinical syndrome: nocturnal seizures characterised by stereotyped dystonic and/or ballistic movements which do not fit into any of the usual clinical categories of sleep-related motor attacks.In their cases the duration of the attacks varied between 15 and 50 seconds.Seizures recurred almost every night, sometimes several times per night, during slow wave sleep.The normal ictal and interictal EEG recordings during both sleep and wakefulness prevent definite confirmation of the epileptic nature of the attacks.A particular form within the cate- gory of parasomnias, for example pavor nocturnus, is also unlikely because of the high frequency and the short duration of the seizures.Are we dealing with a new nosological entity whose pathophysiology is not yet understood?2