Slide 23

Note the marked 3-Hz synchronized spike and wave discharge in the EEG during the generation of an Absence Seizure. These seizures are associated with a sudden arrest of movement, a blank stare, perhaps some synchronized fluttering of the eyelids, and a loss of ability to interact. These seizures are likely to represent a perverse form of thalamocortical activity and are related to the normal generation of spindle waves. In fact, many children that exhibit these seizures have most of their episodes during slow wave sleep, when spindle waves are normally prevalent.