The Epilepsy Aphasia Spectrum

Book excerpt: Landau-Kleffner syndrome (LKS) is a rare childhood neurological syndrome. It is characterised by a sudden or gradual loss of ability to understand of express language (aphasia) and usually occurs in children between the ages of 3 and 7 years. Rolandic epilepsy is the most common epilepsy syndrome in childhood with involvement of the oropharyngeal manifestations, hypersalivation and arrest of speech. These two syndromes are considered to be aspects of the ‘epilepsy-aphasia spectrum’ with common rolandic epilepsy being the mildest form and LKS the most severe.