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Early Parkinsonism in a Senegalese girl with Lafora disease Volume 22, issue 2, April 2020

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  • Figure 1
Authors
1 Department of Pediatric Neuroscience, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Member of the ERN EpiCARE, Milano
2 Neurophysiopathology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milano
3 Unit of Genetics of Neurodegenerative and Metabolic Diseases, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Carlo Besta, Milano
4 Unit of Child Neuropsychiatry, Ospedale Papa Giovanni XXIII, Bergamo
5 Department of Neurology and Epilepsy Center, Milan Center for Neuroscience, San Gerardo Hospital, University of Milano-Bicocca, Monza, Italy
* Correspondence: Laura Canafoglia Clinical Neurophysiology and Epilepsy Center, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Neurologico “C. Besta,” Via Celoria 11, 20133 Milan, Italy

We report the atypical presentation of Lafora disease in a Senegalese girl carrying the homozygous variant, c.560A>C, in the NHLRC1 gene. At 13 years, the patient developed myoclonic and visual seizures, progressive psychomotor slowing, and cognitive decline. At 14 years, a neurological examination showed severe hypomimia, bradykinesia, rigidity and low-amplitude myoclonic jerks. Flash-visual and somatosensory evoked potentials showed an increased amplitude of the cortical components, while an electroretinogram showed attenuated responses. An EEG showed diffuse polyspikes associated with positive-negative jerks as well as posterior slow waves and irregular spikes. The electroclinical picture suggested the diagnosis of Lafora disease regarding the association of visual seizures, cognitive deterioration, and action myoclonus, together with the EEG and evoked potential findings. Two uncommon findings were the prominence of extrapyramidal signs in the early stage of disease (which are rarely reported) and attenuation of electroretinal responses. We consider that Lafora disease should be included in the diagnostic work-up for juvenile Parkinsonism, when associated with epilepsy.