PNES**Apparently more common in women, therefore we won't bother studying it.

[Sympthsical]

3. We studied this in pharmacology

Because you kind of don't want to be giving potent anti-seizure meds to people who do not require them.

The problem is, PNES is pretty rare. A lot of physicians will figure epilepsy, and only when meds don't work will they go fishing around for PNES. The best way to figure it is to do EEG monitoring. An EEG taken during a PNES will pretty much peg the characterization right away. There won't be the signature electrical activity that occurs during epileptic seizures.

But it won't be the first thing physicians look for with seizures. Diagnosis of PNES generally comes after pharmacological treatment fails. They'll start looking more deeply for causes and order an EEG study. But most cases don't typically warrant that. That's kind of why it gets missed.

It's that adage: Doctors usually aren't assuming zebras.