Acute encephalitis with refractory, repetitive partial seizures (AERRPS) is a new epileptic syndrome mainly affecting children. AERRPS has not been perceived in Western countries, although it is widely recognized in Japan. They usually present abruptly with seizure or impaired consciousness as well as high-grade fever following antecedent infection. Seizures in AERRPS are almost exclusively of localized origin, whose semiology includes eye deviation, hemifacial twitching, hemiclonic convulsion, and autonomic manifestations. Partial seizures are brief, but repeat with increasing frequency and develop status epilepticus at nadir. It is followed by continuous transition to intractable epilepsy without a latent period. They are uniformly resistant to conventional antiepileptic drugs. In most cases, high-dose barbiturate treatment is necessary during the acute phase of the illness. Benzodiazepines, mainly midazolam, were partially effective in some patients. The pathogenesis of AERRPS is still poorly understood. It is currently suspected to represent an inflammatory disorder of the central nervous system.
