Epilepsy Syndromes

Below is a list of epilepsy syndromes grouped by the specific age they begin. However, diagnosis may take place at a later age.

Beginning in Infancy (prior to 2 years of age)

Self-limited epilepsy syndromes:

• Self-limited epilepsies in infancy
• Myoclonic epilepsy in infancy 
• Genetic epilepsy with febrile seizures plus 

Syndromes with DEE:

• Early infantile DEE (previously called Ohtahara syndrome, early myoclonic encephalopathy)
• Epilepsy of infancy with migrating focal seizures 
• Infantile epileptic spasms syndrome (previously called Infantile Spasms or West syndrome)
• Dravet syndrome (previously called severe myoclonic epilepsy in infancy)

Beginning in Childhood (2-17 years of age)

Self-limited focal epilepsy syndromes:

• Self-limited epilepsies in childhood
• Childhood occipital visual epilepsy (previously called Gastaut syndrome or late-onset benign occipital epilepsy)
• Photosensitive occipital lobe epilepsy

Generalized epilepsy syndromes:

• Childhood absence epilepsy
• Epilepsy with myoclonic absences
• Epilepsy with eyelid myoclonia (previously called Jeavons syndrome)

Childhood-onset epilepsy syndromes with DEE:

• Epilepsy with myoclonic-atonic seizures (previously called myoclonic atonic epilepsy or Doose syndrome)
• Lennox-Gastaut syndrome
• Developmental/epileptic encephalopathy with spike wave activation in sleep (previously called continuous spike-wave in sleep, electrical status epilepticus in sleep or Landau-Kleffner syndrome)
• Febrile infection-related epilepsy syndrome (FIRES)
• Hemiconvulsion-hemiplegia-epilepsy

Find information for parents and caregivers to help you navigate seizures with your loved one.

Beginning at a Variable Age (can begin in either child or adult ages)

Focal epilepsy syndromes:

• Mesial temporal lobe epilepsy with hippocampal sclerosis
• Familial temporal lobe epilepsy
• Sleep-related hypermotor epilepsy
• Familial focal epilepsy with variable foci
• Epilepsy with auditory features

Focal and generalized epilepsy syndromes:

• Epilepsy with reading induced seizures

Generalized epilepsy syndromes:

• Juvenile absence epilepsy
• Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy
• Epilepsy with generalized tonic-clonic seizures alone

Epilepsy syndromes with DEE or with progressive neurological deterioration:

• Rasmussen syndrome
• Progressive myoclonus epilepsies