Post traumatic seizures are commonly reported after head injury. What is often missed is subtle or subclincal seizures that can manifest with problems like personality changes or declining performance in school. There have even been reports of subclinical status epilepticus developing after closed head injury. (J Trauma 1996 Mar 40:3, 449-51) In these instances an EEG makes a world of difference to the way therapeutic interventions are decided. To some extent the type of seizures one sees in post-traumatic epilepsy is influenced by age and the severity of the trauma. Children and older individuals had a higher incidence of EEG abnormalities ; focal abnormal function was more likely in adults and generalized abnormal funciton more likely in the elderly. (Acta Neurochir Suppl (Wien) 1992, 55: 56-63) Long term disturbances of intellectual or academic or workplace capabilities following head trauma has important medical and legal implications. EEG abnormalities after head trauma has been shown to correlate appreciably with long term sequelae in the fields of neurological disturbances and school performance. (Neuropediatrics 1994 Apr 25:2, 73-7) Patients who suffer severe head trauma with cortical jnjury whose dura is intact have a 7-39% chance of developing epilepsy. Dural penetration increases this to 20-57%. 65% of those who get seizures do so within the first year. 80% of those who develop seizures have their first seizure within the first 2 years. (Wilmore, The Treatment of Epilepsy, ch 42, 1996 , Williams &Wilkins) In a study entitled "EEG findings in minor head trauma as a clue for indication to CT scan", EEG and CT scan findings were compared in a series of 103 cases of children hospitalized within 24 hours after head trauma. It was noted that no pathological findings were found in CT scans for patients with normal EEG and all cases of abnormal CT scans wre reported in patients with frankly abnormal EEG findings. The authors suggest that EEG findings can play a major role in the diagnostic workup of patients with minor head trauma. (Childs Nerv Syst 1989 Jun 5:3, 160-2)