Seizures Flashcards
Paracentral seizures
Originate on mesial surface of parietal lobe, CL genital sensations & postural motor activity, frequently seconarily generative
Risk factors for psychogenic seizures
H/o sexual abuse, epilepsy, psych disorder, head injury/PCS, model for seizure disorder, traumatic life course, family discord/academic stress
Common etiologies of perinatal seizures
Toxemia, infection, congenital defects, difficult birth
Possible distinguishing semiology for pseudoseizures
Acute emotional disturbance may initiate, rare when sleeping or alone, gradual onset, crying during ictus, occasional talking, asynchronous mvmts, react to avoidance testing, personal injury rare, infrequent micturition & defecation, no ictal epileptiform EEG abnormality
Seizures in the frontal opercular region
Epigastric aura, fear, salivation, repetitive chewing mvmts, repetitive swallowing, speech arrest, autonomic symptoms
Todd’s paresis
Focal loss of function in whatever region just experience a seizure; loss of motor function is most common, can range from weakness to full paralysis
What is the most common type of seizure?
Complex partial
Factors that increase risk of cognitive deficits in seizure disorders
AED toxicity, symptomatic epilepsy, seizure type & frequency, younger age at onset, poor control, temporal lobe epilepsy surgery
Tonic seizures
Sudden onset of bilateral tonic extension or flexion of the head, trunk, or extremities for several seconds; typically occur during drowsiness or just after falling asleep/waking up
Early signs of mesial temporal lobe seizure
Staring, behavioral arrest, automatisms, motor restlessness, nonforced head deviation
Orbitofrontal lobe seizures
Usu. complex partial seizures that being with motor or gestural automatisms, peri-ictal urination is typical, may see vocalizations, intense fear, complex motor acts
Cognitive effects of Tegretol
May improve processing speed, psychomotor speed, problem-solving & decrease aggression & emotional lability
Neurological & demographic variables that are predictive of post-surgical seizure freedom
Unilateral EEG abnormalities, presence of exclusively IL temporal inter-ictal epileptiform discharges, presence of structural abnormalities, younger age at time of surgery, shorter duration of pre-operative epilepsy
Variables improving quality of life among epilepsy patients
Reducing seizure frequency, reducing AEDs, promote cognitive reserve/activity, decrease psychiatric symptomatology, reduce family/social/cultural stigma/discrimination
Jacksonian motor seizure
Simple partial seizure in which motor symptoms progress or ‘march’ from fingers to arm to face
Supplementary motor area seizures
Brief, typically include postural symptoms, often refractory to AEDs
Absence seizures (petit mal)
Brief episodes of impairment of consciousness with no warning & short duration no aura or post-ictal fatigue
Late signs of mesial temporal lobe seizure
Arrest reaction, restlessness, staring, dystonic posturing of arms
EEG alpha waves
8-13 CPS/hz Normal dominant/background activity, reflects an anxiety-free state Lost with eye opening, falling asleep, meds that affect mental function, slows in elderly & in nearly ever brain-based neuro illness
Most common underlying pathology of mesial temporal lobe epilepsy
Mesial temporal lobe sclerosis
Cognitive side effects of Dilantin
Psychomotor speed, memory & problem solving; may result in progressive encephalopathy w/ accompanying deterioration in intellectual fx
Which anticonvulsant has the worst cognitive side effects?
Topamax
Simple partial seizures
Involve at least 1 focal area of the brain, do not impair consciousness
Corpus callostomy is limited to pts with what types of seizures
Unknown seizure focus or multiple seizure foci with debilitating seizures that are frequently atonic/clonic in nature
Childhood absence epilepsy
Onset 4-8 years old, may remit in adulthood Seizures are brief staring spells w/ loss of awareness Increased rates of LDs, ADHD, anxiety d/o, mild deficits in attention/exec, delayed & immediate memory, visuospatial
EEG beta waves
>13 hz; prominent with concentration, anxiety, under effects of minor tranquilizers
The majority of refractory epilepsies have focal seizures that arise from where?
Temporal lobe
Lennox-Gastaut syndrome
Onset ages 2-8 yrs Triad: atonic, atypical absence, tonic seizures MR, autistic features, bx problems common, developmental delay can predate onset of seizures or become apparent later Common to have multiple seizures daily, status epilepticus is common
Risk factors for complex febrile seizures evolving into later seizures
Family hx of afebrile seizures, some kind of neuro involvement prior to febrile seizures, abnormal EEG
Occipital lobe epilepsy
Elementary visual hallucinations usually in periphery of CL visual field Amaurosis, scotomas, hemianopsias, quadrantanopsias Tonic/clonic eye deviation, head deviation, blinking, sensation of eye mvmt, nystagmoid eye mvmts Typically spread to temporal, frontal, supplementary motor, or parietal areas
Complex partial seizure
Involve at least 1 focal area of the brain, impair awareness/responses to environmental stimuli Typically starts as simple partial (aura), lasts 30 sec-2 mins
Cryptogenic seizure disorder
Related to a structural abnormality that is not identifiable with current available methods
Common etiologies of seizures in young adults
Trauma, ETOH, neoplasm, drug-related, AVM, AIDS