Reading epilepsy - a case report

Reflex epilepsy, where epileptic seizures are triggered by specific sensory stimuli, affects 4-7% of patients suffering from epilepsy. Reading epilepsy, where all or almost all epileptic seizures are induced by reading, is a very rare form of reflex epilepsy. Two types of this disease have been distinguished: the most common type is caused by sudden muscle jaw contractions (myoclonic variant) and it lasts for a very short time (for example few seconds), while the second type is characterised by focal alexia seizures (focal variant with alexia). The article highlights the clinical picture and treatment of reading epilepsy in a 18-year-old patient. In this case, seizures were always caused by at least 2 hours of continuous reading and were preceded by jaw myoclonus. The treatment included sodium valproate and levetiracetam.