When absence seizures happen close together or a person has many in a day, the person may look or act confused and lose track of what has been going on. For children in school, they may not be aware of what has happened in the classroom, miss instructions from the teacher, or have incomplete work. Certain seizure medicines can help prevent absence seizures. Usually these are recommended for most children. The medicines most commonly used for absence seizures include ethosuximide Zarontin , lamotrigine Lamictal , valproic acid Depakene , or divalproex sodium Depakote.
In about 7 out of 10 children with absence seizures, the seizures may go away by age If this happens, medicines may not be needed as an adult.
Children who start having absence seizures before age 9 are much more likely to outgrow them than children whose absence seizures start after age For other children, seizure medication may be needed long-term. A neurologist can help you learn about the risks, treatments, and outlook for the future. Absence seizures may be confused with other types of seizures. If the diagnosis is not clear or your child continues to have problems, see an epilepsy specialist called an epileptologist.
However, absence seizures may cause your child to. Seizures that involve staring and a change in awareness are sometimes mislabeled as absence seizures. In some instances, especially with young children, the cause of the seizure may be unknown.
Living with epilepsy and experiencing repeated seizures can have both short- and long-term effects. These can range from a drop in quality of life to increased risks of mental health conditions. Some seizures can cause you to lose total control of your body.
This can lead to falls and other movements that can result in injury. People with epilepsy typically have more physical issues, such as bruising and fractures, than people without the condition. Being prone to seizures may also affect your quality of life. For example, you may no longer be able to drive. You may want to avoid situations where a seizure could cause serious harm, such as swimming or traveling alone.
Prolonged seizures can lead to coma or death. While death as a direct result of seizures is rare, the risk of premature death in people with epilepsy is up to three times higher than in the general populace. Living with epilepsy and seizures can also have an impact on your mental health.
People with epilepsy have a higher rate of bipolar disorder and depression than people without the condition. Learn more about the long-term outlook for people with epilepsy here.
Doctors can have a difficult time diagnosing seizure types. Your doctor may recommend specific tests to accurately diagnose a seizure and help ensure that the treatments they recommend will be effective. Your doctor will consider your complete medical history and the events leading up to the seizure.
For example, migraine , headaches, sleep disorders , and extreme psychological stress can cause seizure-like symptoms. Lab tests may help your doctor rule out other conditions that can cause seizure-like activity. The tests may include:. An electroencephalogram EEG can help your doctor diagnose a seizure.
This test measures your brain waves. Viewing brain waves during a seizure can help your doctor diagnose the type of seizure. These scans allow your doctor to see abnormalities like blocked blood flow or a tumor.
Treatments for seizures depend on the cause. By treating the cause of the seizures, you may be able to prevent future seizures from occurring. The treatment for seizures due to epilepsy include:. Anti-epileptic drugs are often the first treatment option for people experiencing multiple seizures. They target the signaling activities in specific brain cells and can effectively control seizures in approximately 70 percent of cases. There are multiple types of anti-epileptic drugs.
You and your doctor may have to work to find out which is the best medication for treating your condition. If you have epilepsy, ask your healthcare provider to explain what type of seizures you have. Learning the names and terms for your seizure type s can help you describe it accurately to others.
Generalized Seizures Expand 2. Generalized Seizures Section Generalized seizures occur when there is widespread seizure activity in the left and right hemispheres of the brain. The different types of generalized seizures are:. Additional Seizure Types Expand Additional Seizure Types Section Infantile Spasms Infantile spasms are a type of epilepsy seizure but they do not fit into the category of focal or generalized seizures.
Psychogenic Non-epileptic Seizures PNES Psychogenic non-epileptic seizures are not due to epilepsy but may look very similar to an epilepsy seizure. With a seizure, signs and symptoms can range from mild to severe and vary depending on the type of seizure. Seizure signs and symptoms may include:. Doctors generally classify seizures as either focal or generalized, based on how and where abnormal brain activity begins.
Seizures may also be classified as unknown onset, if how the seizure began isn't known. Focal seizures result from abnormal electrical activity in one area of your brain.
Focal seizures can occur with or without loss of consciousness:. Symptoms of focal seizures may be confused with other neurological disorders, such as migraine, narcolepsy or mental illness. Seizures that appear to involve all areas of the brain are called generalized seizures.
Different types of generalized seizures include:. There is a problem with information submitted for this request. Subscribe for free and receive the latest on epilepsy treatment, care and management. Error Select a topic. Error Email field is required. Error Include a valid email address. To provide you with the most relevant and helpful information, and understand which information is beneficial, we may combine your email and website usage information with other information we have about you.
If you are a Mayo Clinic patient, this could include protected health information. If we combine this information with your protected health information, we will treat all of that information as protected health information, and will only use or disclose that information as set forth in our notice of privacy practices. You may opt-out of email communications at any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link in the e-mail.
You will receive the first epilepsy email message in your inbox shortly. This message will include the latest treatment options, innovations and other information from our epilepsy experts. Nerve cells neurons in the brain create, send and receive electrical impulses, which allow the brain's nerve cells to communicate. Anything that disrupts these communication pathways can lead to a seizure.
0コメント