Abstracts

Summary: Clinical epilepsy has traditionally focused on "the seizure" as the primary measure of morbidity. Yet even for patients with refractory epilepsy, seizures occupy a tiny fraction of their lives. This course will address the cognitive (e.g., memory, attention), behavioral (e.g., depression, psychosis), physical (e.g., headache) and electrophysiological features of the postictal and interictal states in children and adults. Lessons from animal models of epilepsy that help to understand the pathophysiology and evolution of these changes will be revieewed. The clinical spectrum as well as the frequency and severity of symptoms outside the ictal period will be reviewed. Diagnostic, preventive, and therapeutic strategies will be discussed.