Abstract
The authors report at adult age 7 patients (6 men, one woman) with the syndrome of
"acquired aphasiaepilepsy", 6 of which had been previously studied as children. The
results of the language, neuropsychological and socio-educational evaluation detailed
many years after the onset of the aphasia are the subject of this report.
One man has recovered completely, one has a normal oral language but is severely dyslexic,
one has recovered normal comprehension but has severe expressive language problems.
Four have absent language comprehension and lack of expressive speech, and only one
of them has learned and is using sign language with some efficiency. None has developed
functional written language. Attempts to offer a substitutive language to children
with prolonged inability to understand and use oral language appears important but
is fraught with problems.
Although there are no conclusive data about the role of the continuous paroxysmal
EEG discharges and the effect of their suppression with drug treatment on the prognosis
of the aphasia, the definite fluctuations of the aphasia in some cases, the isolated
recent case reports of definitive improvement with drug treatment justify further
trials in this potentially severe and chronic condition.
Key words
Acquired aphasia of childhood - Landau-Kleffner syndrome - Idiopathic childhood epilepsy
- Auditory agnosia in children - Long-term outcome
