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Benign neonatal sleep myoclonus Volume 10, issue 2, June 2008

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  • Benign neonatal sleep myoclonus

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Authors
Epilepsy Treatment and Research Unit, Division of Child Neurology, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Federal University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil

Benign neonatal sleep myoclonus is a non-epileptic disorder. This phenomenon of the first weeks of life is characterized by erratic myoclonic jerks occurring only during sleep and with no electroencephalographic changes. It is not associated with perinatal complications, disappears spontaneously within two to four months, and it does not compromise future development. We illustrate with a video this relatively frequent condition, which is often misdiagnosed as epileptic in nature, and discuss the clinical characteristics and differential diagnosis. [Published with video sequences].