Hot water epilepsy with pachygyria

Hot water epilepsy (HWE) refers to a specific type of reflex epilepsy precipitated by the stimulus of bathing in hot water. Pathogenesis is still unknown and temporal lobe has been thought to take part in the epileptogenesis. HWE can be symptomatic of focal cortical malformation, and few cases were reported. This is the third report of HEW in which a parietal malformation has been observed. Our hypothesis that sensory cortex might be implicated in the epileptogenic process is corroborated by two previous reports on patients with HWE and malformation of the parietal cortical development. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.