CPT: Epilepsy Flashcards
What is epilepsy?
A neurological disease that has a range of symptoms that are associated with a moment of scncronized abnormal electrical activity in the brain
Who is effected by the disease?
- Over 65s
- Young children
What causes it?
- 70% - unknown
30%:
- head trauma
- posioning
- infection
- maternal injury
- cardiovascular
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How is Epilepsy diagnosed?
- Detailed history taken - eye witness may be needed as when seizure their mind will be blank
- Physical exam
- Blood tests
- ECG
- EEG
- imaging: CT scan, MRI
- NEuropsychological assessment
Seizures are broken up into different classes depending on what?
- Where they start in the brain (onset)
- Whether or not the persons awareness is affected
- whether or not seizures involve other symptoms such as movements
Why would an MRI be used?
To see potential area in the brain that have been damaged or a brain tumour
What is EEG?
Electroencephalography
What classifications of seizures are there?
- Focual (awarenes/ impaired): when affects only a part of the brain
- Generalised: Affects both hemispheres
Describe focal awareness seizures
- Affects only a small part of the brain
- Person is conscious
- Range of symptoms depending on the affected area: Tingling (sensory), twitching (motor), flashing lights (visual)
Describe focal impaired awareness seizures
- Affects a larger part of one hemisphere
- Person may be confused
What is automatism?
Strange repetitive movements
Describe generalised seizures
Affects both hemispheres
- Abscene
- Tonic clonic
- Atonic
- Myoclonic
- stratus epilepticus
What is absence?
Blank, unresponsive, breifly unconscious
What is tonic clonic
Unconscious, muscle become stiff (tonic) and then shake and jerk (clonic). After wards patient feels tired and has a headache
What is Atonic?
Muscles relax
