Most children with alobar HPE will have seizures requiring anticonvulsant medication. Muscle spasticity and periods of marked irritability are present to some degree in all, and various medications may be helpful. Episodes of irregular breathing and pulse rate and highly variable body temperature control can be particularly troublesome. Endocrine problems due to pituitary gland malfunction may require medication. Feeding is a major problem, and tube or gastrostomy feeding is often recommended.
Constipation is a common problem but can be managed successfully.
In the less severe forms, semilobar and lobar HPE , there is more complete development of the brain into right and left hemispheres. In general, survival is longer than with the alobar type, with many affected children living into adulthood, although early death is also common. Some degree of learning disability is the rule and is often severe. With the mildest forms of lobar HPE, the child may have minimal disability and a normal lifespan. Absent sense of smell and single maxillary central incisor tooth may be the only facial features at the mild end of the spectrum.