Hippocampal Formation Maldevelopment and Sudden Unexpected Death across the Pediatric Age Spectrum

In this study, we characterized the clinicopathologic features in a retrospective case series of 32 children with sudden death and hippocampal formation (HF) maldevelopment. The greatest frequency of deaths was between 3 weeks and 3 years (81%, 26/32). Dentate anomalies were found across the pediatric age spectrum, supporting a common vulnerability that defies the 1-year age cutoff between SIDS and SUDC. Twelve cases (38%) had seizures, including 7 only with febrile seizures. Subicular anomalies were found in cases over 1 year of age and were associated with increased risk of febrile seizures. Sudden death associated with HF maldevelopment reflects a complex interaction of intrinsic and extrinsic factors that lead to death at different pediatric ages, and may be analogous to sudden unexplained death in epilepsy.

Source: Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology - September 19, 2016 Category: Neurology Authors: Kinney, H. C., Poduri, A. H., Cryan, J. B., Haynes, R. L., Teot, L., Sleeper, L. A., Holm, I. A., Berry, G. T., Prabhu, S. P., Warfield, S. K., Brownstein, C., Abram, H. S., Kruer, M., Kemp, W. L., Hargitai, B., Gastrang, J., Mena, O. J., Haas, E. A., Das Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research