Bradycardia and asystole induced by partial seizures: A case report and literature review

Devinsky O, Pacia S, and Tatambhotla G (1997) Bradycardia and asystole induced by partial seizures: A case report and literature review. Neurology 48:6 1712–4.

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Abstract: Bradyarrhythmias associated with partial seizures are uncommon, with most reported patients having temporal lobe seizure foci on scalp EEG recordings. We report a patient with bradycardia and sinus arrest during a complex partial seizure documented during bilateral subdural EEG and EEG and simultaneous video and EEG recordings. The seizure began in the left temporal lobe and spread to the right temporal region, with bradycardia occurring 55 seconds after ictal onset and asystole after 60 seconds.

Context

• Single-case report of patient with bradycardia and asystole following complex partial seizure that occurred during intracranial monitoring. The seizure originated in the left temporal lobe. During one seizure, bradycardia began 55 seconds after EEG-determined seizure onset and lasted 9 s. In another seizure asystole began 60 s after seizure and lasted 8 s. The article also provides a review of a number of other case reports and several animal studies involving bradycardia or asystole in relation to seizure.