Seizure disorders presenting with psychiatric symptomatology

Seizure disorders can be mistaken for psychiatric disorders and, the two have a number of poorly understood interrelations. Disruptions of consciousness, motor activity, hallucinations, and abrupt mood and anxiety changes can all be seizure manifestations caused by cortical neuronal discharges. This article presents the classification and proposed psychopathology of seizure disorders. It then reviews the psychiatric conditions that frequently mimic elements of such seizure disorders, giving hints that will allow the clinician to correctly identify seizures that are creating psychiatric presentations. Finally, this article makes clear the situations in which anticonvulsant medications may be of value when nothing else seems to be working.