Focal emotional seizure with laughing

What it means

Focal emotional seizure with laughing (gelastic) is characterized by bursts of laughter or giggling, usually without appropriate related emotion of happiness, and described as 'mirthless'.

This seizure type is characteristic of seizures arising in the hypothalamus (see hypothalamic hamartoma), but can occur in seizures arising in the frontal or temporal lobes.

Rare diseases that can present with this6

The range is how often this sign appears among people diagnosed with each disease — it is not a probability of having any of them. Many of these signs also occur in common, non-rare conditions. A sign on this page is a conversation to have with a clinician, not a conclusion.

Part of the broader category

Also called: Gelastic seizure · Gelastic seizures