Schizencephaly: A rare cause of late-onset epilepsy in an adult

Abstract

Schizencephaly, a rare congenital cerebral deformity that affects the cerebral mantle and is caused by both hereditary and acquired factors, is defined by a cleft that spans the entire cerebral hemisphere from the lateral ventricle to the cerebral cortex. Adult symptoms have only been described in a few cases in the literature. Hemiparesis, developmental delays, or seizures are manifestations of the clinical presentation, which is dependent on the size and location of the lesion. Neuroimaging investigations, particularly MRI, enable the diagnosis and rule out other causes. Usually discovered at birth, this entity begins to show up in the first several years. To prevent receiving the wrong treatment, the ailment must be correctly diagnosed. We report the observation of a 43-year-old patient with partial epileptic seizures but with an asymptomatic childhood, in relation to unilateral closed cleft schizencephaly associated with gray matter heterotopia. In this case, we highlight the importance of neuroimaging, in particular MRI on the diagnosis of this entity and to identify the associated anomalies.

Keywords

• Schizencephaly
• Seizure
• MRI
• Adult