The clinical correlates of agenesis of the corpus callosum were examined in 56 cases (37 adult, 19 pediatric) reported to the British Neurological Surveillance Unit (BNSU) and surveyed at the Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK. Male to female ratio was 2:1 for adult cases and 3:2 in children. Approximately two-thirds (57%) had epilepsy, half the adults were intellectually impaired, and 35% had a psychiatric disorder. Macrocephaly may have accounted for an unusually high (35%) incidence of obstetric complications. The obstetric history was not correlated with the complication of epilepsy, low IQ, or psychiatric disorder. [1]
COMMENT. In addition to epilepsy, cognitive impairments and mental retardation, agenesis of the corpus callosum may be complicated by neuropsychiatric disorders, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and psychoses. Corpus callosal agenesis is a manifestation of Aicardi and other developmental syndromes. It may also be associated with schizencephaly.