EPILEPSY Flashcards
seizures
a transient occurrence of signs and/or symptoms due to abnormal excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain
some seizures can hardly noticed, while others are totally disabling. generally depends on area of the brain in which the seizure occurs
epilepsy
- at least 2 unprovoked (or reflex) seizures occurring >24h apart
- one unprovoked (or reflex) seizure and a probability of further seizures similar to the general recurrence risk (at least 60%) after 2 unprovoked seizures, occurring over the next 10 years
- diagnosis of epilepsy syndrome
generalised seizures
arising within and rapidly engaging bilaterally distributed networks
(affects both hemispheres of the brain)
name all the generalised seizures (6)
- tonic-clonic
- absence
- clonic
- atonic
- myoclonic
tonic seizures
cause all of your muscle to suddenly become stiff
you can lose balance and fall over
absence seizures
- when you lose awareness of your surroundings for a short time
- mainly affect children but can happen at any age
- during the seizure the person may stare into space, flutter their eyes or make slight jerking movements
- the seizure only lasts up to 15 seconds and you won’t be able to remember them
- can happen several times a day
myoclonic seizures
- where some or all of your body suddenly twitches or jerks, often happen soon after waking up
- usually last only a fraction of a second, but can occur several times.
- you normally remain awake
atonic seizures
cause all your muscles to suddenly relax, so you may fall to the ground
clonic seizures
cause the body to shake and jerk but not stiff (like muscle spasms)
typically last a few minutes and you might lose consciousness
tonic-clonic seizures
happens in 2 stages
1. tonic stage - you lose consciousness and body goes stiff
2. clonic stage - limbs jerk about, may lose control of bladder or bowel, might bite your tongue or the inside of your cheek, might have difficulty breathing
long-term consequences of status epilepticus
neuronal death
neuronal injury
alteration of neuronal networks
status epilepticus
condition resulting from either the failure of the mechanisms responsible for seizure termination or from the initiation of mechanisms which lead to abnormally prolonged seizures
symptoms of a simple partial (focal) seizure or ‘auras’
can cause
- general strange feeling
- ‘rising’ feeling in tummy
- deja vu
- unusual smells/tastes
- tingling in your arms or legs
- stiffness or twitching in part of the body (arm or hand)
simple partial (focal) seizures or ‘auras’
known as ‘warnings’ or ‘auras’ because they can be a sign that another type of seizure is about to happen
you remain awake and aware
complex partial (focal) seizures symptoms
- smacking your lips
- rubbing your hands
- making random noises
- moving your arms around
- pick/fiddling
- chewing or wallowing
you lose your sense of awareness and make random body movements
you will not have any memory of it
