INTRODUCTION: Juvenile systemic lupus erythematosus is more incident in female 
affecting different systems including the central nervous system. The aim of 
this study was to check the incidence of seizures and electroencephalographic 
features in these patients.
METHOD: It was analyzed all patients with juvenile systemic lupus erythematosus 
referred to the Pequeno Príncipe Hospital in Curitiba, PR, Brazil, in the year 
of 2007. The patients were submitted to EEG and subdivided into two groups 
according to the presence or absence of epileptic seizures. Mann-Whitney 
statistical test was used.
RESULTS: Forty-nine cases were included, there were 73.45% female, with an age 
between 3 and 28 years (micro=17.00 years; s=5.01 years). Seizures (13/26.50%) 
were the most frequent manifestation followed by headache (13/26.50%) and 
ischemic stroke (6/12.25%). Cerebral vasculites were the most frequent 
alteration in neuroimage. The abnormalities of EEG were characterized by 
asymmetry of the electric cerebral activity, diffuse disorganized background 
activity, focal epileptiform discharges in the right central-temporal region, 
generalized paroxysmal of 3 Hz spike-waves, and bursts of theta-delta slowness 
activity in the right parietal-occiptal region. The statistic analysis showed no 
significantly difference between age of onset of symptoms and the risk of 
seizures (p 0.675) as well as between time of the disease and the risk of 
seizures (p 0.436).
CONCLUSION: Neurologic manifestations, in special epileptic seizures, are 
frequent in systemic lupus erythematosus. Age of onset of symptoms and the time 
of disease did not increase the risk of epileptic seizures in this disease.