Misdiagnoses of Epilepsy as Ekbom Syndrome, Mood Instability, and Nocturnal Visual Hallucinations

Abstract

Epileptic seizures may be misdiagnosed if they manifest as psychiatric symptoms. We report three female patients with no preexisting history of epilepsy that were unsuccessfully treated as primary psychiatric disorder: one patient was initially diagnosed with somatization and Ekbom syndrome; the second was referred to psychiatrist due to mood instability and visual hallucinations; and the third one was referred for anxiety and hallucinations related to sleep. A carefully taken medical history clarified diagnoses of epilepsy. None of the patients responded to medications aimed at treating psychiatric symptoms, and all the patients had favorable response to antiepileptic treatment. These cases illustrate that epileptic patients may experience nonconvulsive seizures that might be misdiagnosed as primary psychiatric disorder.