Epilepsy is due to an upset in brain chemistry, which means that the messages that travel between nerve cells or neurons become scrambled. Because of this, the activity of neurons is disturbed and results in a seizure or loss of consciousness. Many types of seizure can occur and epilepsy can affect anyone at any age.
Epilepsy/seizure – caused by an abnormal electrical condition in the brain producing: absences, convulsions, unusual movements, temporary loss of consciousness.
There are a lot of misconceptions about epilepsy for those who are not familiar with the neurological disorder. Some of the most common questions we receive at Aura America have to do with these misconceptions. We have also noticed most of these questions seem to derive from what's being displayed on television, in particular, medical dramas. No worries. We're here to clear some of the confusion. Today, we’re busting the top six myths concerning epilepsy.
“Epilepsy is a neurological condition, which affects the nervous system. (www.epilepsy.com/101/ep101_epilepsy) Epilepsy is also known as seizure disorder. People are usually diagnosed after having two seizures that was caused by a known medical condition such as extremely low blood sugar or withdrawal from alcohol.
There have been many silent killers that have concerned mankind since the dawn of time. It is underestimated and underdiagnosed but it is the most frequently prevalent neurological disorders. Epilepsy and all its forms is as much of a concern today as it was thousands of years ago. Our oldest description that defines the symptoms of epileptic seizures was written two thousand years ago BC (Magiorkinis E1, 2010). Epileptic seizures are the result of excessive and abnormal nerve cell activity in the brain. This puts them at an increased risk of death due to the brains abnormal control of secondary organ systems. The risk increases as people age. Worldwide the overall percentage of epileptic diagnosis encompasses nearly three percent of the population
The topic to be researched is epilepsy. Epilepsy is a serious neurological disorder where the brain is prone to seizures. Seizures are caused by neurones in the brain receiving too much electrical activity. Recurring seizures are the only visible symptom of epilepsy. Epilepsy has 2 main types of seizures – generalised and partial. The type of seizure will depend on the brain area affected. Epilepsy is most commonly diagnosed during childhood – under the age of 15, and also during later stages of life – over the age of 65. Genetics can also play a part in some types of epilepsy, such as Lafora Progressive Myoclonic Epilepsy and Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy. As epilepsy is a disorder of the central nervous system it can affect the body in different
Epilepsy is a brain disorder classified as a neurological disorder that affects the brain’s electrical and immoderate activity which causes a person to have a seizure. This brain disorder goes back thousands of years to Ancient Greece where these individuals believed that people had seizures, they were being visited by an evil spirit or demon. The word Epilepsy also derives from the ancient Greek word attack. Ancient Greeks also thought that this neurological disorder, Epilepsy, was infectious and for this same matter most of the people that suffered from this disorder lived alone. Now in present day, researchers and scientist know that this is not true and they now know the real factors and things that cause these seizures to occur.
Epilepsy is one of the most common of all the neurological disorders. Epilepsy effects about Sixty-Five million people worldwide and three million in the USA alone(CureEpilepsy). Epilepsy is when a person has a seizure for no actual reasons, unlike people who have them because of low blood sugar or withdrawals. A person can be diagnosed with this disorder is they have one or more seizures that aren’t caused by a known condition. Rarely do they perform surgery for epilepsy, Medication is commonly used to control seizures.
When you look at me, I look like your normal average person. People have assumed I am smart, and I never knew why. But, it hasn't always been that way. I have fought strong and hard to be where I am today. I have epilepsy, but I don't let it define who I am. Most people don't know a lot about this disorder and that is where labeling comes into play.
“Where’s my shoe?” I asked worried as I was looking down at my feet, being driven to the hospital in an ambulance. Then a paramedic told me, “Don’t worry about your shoe” in a comforting voice, for some reason I was more worried about where my shoe had gone than why I was in an ambulance. I can’t remember what happened afterwards but waking up in a hospital room, with my parents in the room. Then a nurse walked in and told us that I have gotten a seizure, I was about 13 when I had my first seizure. After all that I went home, and it was very late. Later I was diagnosed with Epilepsy. Afterwards I had gotten another two seizures, one was because I wasn’t on medication yet. The other was caused because I missed a whole day of taking my medication.
Epilepsy is a disease of the CNS, which is described as undisciplined brain activity caused by electrical discharges, of neurons (Lewis et al., 2015). Epilepsy is not diagnosed if a seizure is caused by an illness that can be corrected. Some common illnesses that may cause a seizure, but can be correct in preventing another one from happening are: acidosis, hypoglycemia, alcohol or drug withdrawal, dehydration, hypoxia and electrolyte imbalances (Lewis et al., 2015).
Pediatric epilepsy, which affects approximately 1% of U.S. children1, is one of the main contributors to avoidable hospitalizations and emergency department visits.2 Poor seizure control and repeat admissions not only increase demand on health care providers, but they negatively affect long-term seizure control3 and place a significant financial4 and emotional5 burden on patients and families. Inadequate education may be responsible for many of these unnecessary admissions. In fact, one study showed that only 29% of caregivers of children with epilepsy knew the names and doses of their child’s medications.6 By improving patient education, we may be able to improve self-management and reduce health-care utilization. In other diseases, educational
So far, no cause has been found for absence seizures. However it may run in families. Seizures are caused due to abnormal activity of the brain cells. Any abnormality in the production, discharge or conduction of nerve impulses in the brain causes seizures. However the cause for abnormal production of electrical signals in the brain of a child suffering from absence epilepsy is unknown.
Epilepsy is a neurological condition of the brain that is also known as seizure disorder causing an individual to have recurrent seizures (“Epilepsy and Seizures”). Epilepsy and seizures are often interchangeable when defining a neurological condition; both involve the nervous system. The primary difference is that epilepsy is a disorder and seizures are considered a symptom. An individual can experience changes in behavior and their ability to focus. The seizures happen when the electrical activity of the brain is disturbed and causes them to experience involuntary jerking of the muscles, experience an altered state of consciousness or other peculiar behaviors. Epilepsy is
There is no single test that can diagnosis epilepsy and lots of information need to be gathered to assess the causes of seizures that may be due to epilepsy. If there are two or more seizures that started in the brain, then the patient may be diagnose with epilepsy. Firstly, for the accessing of the causes of seizures, the doctor needs to know the symptoms that the patient have before, during and after the seizures. An epileptic seizure happen very suddenly and the patient has no ideal that a seizure is about to happen. Important information to look out for are what happened, (1) before the seizure–things that trigger the seizure, any mood changes, any unusual sensations, making any sound like crying out or mumbling; (2) during the seizure-did they appear to be “blank’ or stare into space, lose consciousness or become confused, do anything unusual like mumbling, wandering about or fiddling with clothes, any part of their body move, jerk or twitch, bite their tongue or cheek ; (3) after the seizure- did they feel tired, worn out or sleepy, how long was it before they return to normal. Secondly, patient’s medical and personal history and whether they are taking any other medications, drugs or alcohol also plays an important role in the diagnosis. As patient may have other disorders involving other system of the body