Developmental and epileptic encephalopathy, 43

Developmental and epileptic encephalopathy-43 (DEE43) is a neurologic disorder characterized by the onset of various types of seizures usually in the first year of life. The age at onset is highly variable, ranging from the neonatal period to about 12 months of age. Later onset may rarely occur. Seizure types include febrile, infantile spasms, focal, tonic-clonic, and myoclonic; they tend to be refractory to treatment. Affected individuals show global developmental delay with mild to moderate intellectual disability, although some may have normal early development before the onset of seizures. EEG shows focal, multifocal, or generalized sharp waves associated with seizures, sometimes with hypsarrhythmia. Additional more variable features include tube feeding, hypotonia, peripheral hypertonia, ataxia, dyskinesia, and behavioral difficulties, including aggression, ADHD, stereotypic, and impulsive behavior (summary by the Epi4K Consortium, 2016). For a general phenotypic description and a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of DEE, see 308350.

OMIM