Idiopathic generalized epilepsy (IGE) is a group of epileptic disorders that are believed to have a strong underlying genetic basis.
The genetic cause of some IGE types is known, though inheritance does not always follow a simple monogenic mechanism.
This form of epilepsy is very rare, representing less than 1% of cases, and is twice as prevalent in boys compared to girls.
Generalized epilepsy with febrile seizures plus (GEFS+) is an umbrella for many other syndromes that share causative genes.
This rare epilepsy has a wide age range of presentation (from the first year of life through the early teens).
This epilepsy is characterized by absence seizures concurrent with myoclonic jerks, typically occurring several times daily.
Children with this disorder have incredibly brief (<100ms) myoclonic jerks followed by equally brief loss of muscle tone, sometimes resulting in dangerous falls.