Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. An epileptic seizure is the clinical manifestation of an abnormal, excessive, and synchronized electrical discharge in the neurons. The occurrence of two or more unprovoked seizures defines epilepsy. The occurrence of just one seizure may warrant the definition in a more clinical usage where recurrence may be able to be prejudged. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrical activity in the brain. These episodes can result in physical injuries, either directly, such as broken bones, or through causing accidents. In epilepsy, seizures tend to recur and may have no detectable underlying cause. Isolated seizures that are provoked by a specific cause such as poisoning are not deemed to represent epilepsy. People with epilepsy may be treated differently in various areas of the world and experience varying degrees of social stigma due to the alarming nature of their symptoms.
A seizure is a sudden change in behavior, movement and/or consciousness due to abnormal electrical activity in the brain. Seizures can look different in different people. It can be uncontrolled shaking of the whole body or a person spacing out for a few seconds. Most seizures last less than two minutes. They are then followed by confusion/drowsiness before the person returns to normal. If a seizure lasts longer than 5 minutes, it is a medical emergency and needs immediate treatment.
A convulsion is a medical condition where the body muscles contract and relax rapidly and repeatedly, resulting in uncontrolled shaking. Because epileptic seizures typically include convulsions, the term convulsion is often used as a synonym for seizure. However, not all epileptic seizures result in convulsions, and not all convulsions are caused by epileptic seizures. Non-epileptic convulsions have no relation with epilepsy, and are caused by non-epileptic seizures.
A febrile seizure, also known as a fever fit or febrile convulsion, is a seizure associated with a high body temperature but without any serious underlying health issue. They most commonly occur in children between the ages of 6 months and 5 years. Most seizures are less than five minutes in duration, and the child is completely back to normal within an hour of the event. There are two types: simple febrile seizures and complex febrile seizures. Simple febrile seizures involve an otherwise healthy child who has at most one tonic-clonic seizure lasting less than 15 minutes in a 24-hour period. Complex febrile seizures have focal symptoms, last longer than 15 minutes, or occur more than once within 24 hours. About 80% are classified as simple febrile seizures.
Absence seizures are one of several kinds of generalized seizures. In the past, absence epilepsy was referred to as "pyknolepsy," a term derived from the Greek word "pyknos," signifying "extremely frequent" or "grouped". These seizures are sometimes referred to as petit mal seizures ; however, usage of this terminology is no longer recommended. Absence seizures are characterized by a brief loss and return of consciousness, generally not followed by a period of lethargy. Absence seizures are most common in children. They affect both sides of the brain.
A headache is often present in patients with epilepsy. If the headache occurs in the vicinity of a seizure, it is defined as peri-ictal headache, which can occur either before (pre-ictal) or after (post-ictal) the seizure, to which the term ictal refers. An ictal headache itself may or may not be an epileptic manifestation. In the first case, it is defined as ictal epileptic headache or simply epileptic headache. It is a type of pain seizure that can remain isolated or be followed by other manifestations of the seizure. On the other hand, a ictal non-epileptic headache is a headache that occurs during a seizure but it is not due to an epileptic mechanism. When the headache does not occur in the vicinity of a seizure, it is defined as inter-ictal headache. In the case it's a disorder separate from epilepsy, it's a comorbidity.
Psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES), also referred to as pseudoseizures, non-epileptic attack disorder (NEAD), functional seizures, or dissociative seizures, are episodes resembling an epileptic seizure but without the characteristic electrical discharges associated with epilepsy. PNES fall under the category of disorders known as functional neurological disorders (FND) and are typically treated by psychologists or psychiatrists.
In the field of neurology, seizure types are categories of seizures defined by seizure behavior, symptoms, and diagnostic tests. The International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) 2017 classification of seizures is the internationally recognized standard for identifying seizure types. The ILAE 2017 classification of seizures is a revision of the prior ILAE 1981 classification of seizures. Distinguishing between seizure types is important since different types of seizures may have different causes, outcomes, and treatments.
Abdominal epilepsy is a rare condition consisting of gastrointestinal disturbances caused by epileptiform seizure activity. It is most frequently found in children, though a few cases of it have been reported in adults. It has been described as a type of temporal lobe epilepsy. Responsiveness to anticonvulsants can aid in the diagnosis. Distinguishing features of abdominal epilepsy include (1) Abnormal laboratory, radiographic, and endoscopic findings revealing paroxysmal GI manifestations of unknown origin (2) CNS symptoms (3) Abnormal EEG. Most published medical literature dealing with abdominal epilepsy is in the form of individual case reports. A 2005 review article found a total of 36 cases described in the medical literature.
Reflex asystolic syncope (RAS) is a form of syncope encountered mainly, but not exclusively, in young children. Reflex anoxic seizures are not epileptic seizures or epilepsy. This is usually a consequence of a reduction in cerebral perfusion by oxygenated blood. It can be a result of either a sudden reduction in the blood flow to the brain, a drop in the oxygen content of the blood supplying the brain, or a combination of the two. Syncope can have different meanings ranging from transient loss of consciousness, usually accompanied by a decrease or loss in postural tone, to tonic and myoclonic events and nonepileptic spasms.
A generalized tonic–clonic seizure, commonly known as a grand mal seizure or GTCS, is a type of generalized seizure that produces bilateral, convulsive tonic and clonic muscle contractions. Tonic–clonic seizures are the seizure type most commonly associated with epilepsy and seizures in general and the most common seizure associated with metabolic imbalances. It is a misconception that they are the sole type of seizure, as they are the main seizure type in approximately 10% of those with epilepsy.
Ohtahara syndrome (OS), also known as Early Infantile Developmental & Epileptic Encephalopathy (EIDEE) is a progressive epileptic encephalopathy. The syndrome is outwardly characterized by tonic spasms and partial seizures within the first few months of life, and receives its more elaborate name from the pattern of burst activity on an electroencephalogram (EEG). It is an extremely debilitating progressive neurological disorder, involving intractable seizures and severe intellectual disabilities. No single cause has been identified, although in many cases structural brain damage is present.
Panayiotopoulos syndrome is a common idiopathic childhood-related seizure disorder that occurs exclusively in otherwise normal children and manifests mainly with autonomic epileptic seizures and autonomic status epilepticus. An expert consensus has defined Panayiotopoulos syndrome as "a benign age-related focal seizure disorder occurring in early and mid-childhood. It is characterized by seizures, often prolonged, with predominantly autonomic symptoms, and by an EEG [electroencephalogram] that shows shifting and/or multiple foci, often with occipital predominance."
Syncope, commonly known as fainting or passing out, is a loss of consciousness and muscle strength characterized by a fast onset, short duration, and spontaneous recovery. It is caused by a decrease in blood flow to the brain, typically from low blood pressure. There are sometimes symptoms before the loss of consciousness such as lightheadedness, sweating, pale skin, blurred vision, nausea, vomiting, or feeling warm. Syncope may also be associated with a short episode of muscle twitching. Psychiatric causes can also be determined when a patient experiences fear, anxiety, or panic; particularly before a stressful event, usually medical in nature. When consciousness and muscle strength are not completely lost, it is called presyncope. It is recommended that presyncope be treated the same as syncope.
Gratification disorder is a rare and often misdiagnosed form of masturbatory behavior, or the behavior of stimulating of one's own genitals, seen predominantly in infants and toddlers. Most pediatricians agree that masturbation is both normal and common behavior in children at some point in their childhood. The behavior is labeled a disorder when the child forms a habit, and misdiagnoses of the behavior can lead to unnecessary and invasive testing for other severe health conditions, including multiple neurological or motor disorders.
Epilepsy is a neurological condition of recurrent episodes of unprovoked epileptic seizures. A seizure is an abnormal neuronal brain activity that can cause intellectual, emotional, and social consequences. Epilepsy affects children and adults of all ages and races, and is one of the most common neurological disorders of the nervous system. Epilepsy is more common among children than adults, affecting about 6 out of 1000 US children that are between the age of 0 to 5 years old. The epileptic seizures can be of different types depending on the part of the brain that was affected, seizures are classified in 2 main types partial seizure or generalized seizure.
Hair-grooming syncope is a form of syncope associated with combing and brushing one's hair. It is most typically seen in children aged five to sixteen.
An epilepsy syndrome is defined as "a characteristic cluster of clinical and Electroencephalography (EEG) features, often supported by specific etiological findings ."
Functional neurologic disorder or functional neurological disorder (FND) is a condition in which patients experience neurological symptoms such as weakness, movement problems, sensory symptoms, and convulsions. As a functional disorder, there is, by definition, no known disease process affecting the structure of the body, yet the person experiences symptoms relating to their body function. Symptoms of functional neurological disorders are clinically recognisable, but are not categorically associated with a definable organic disease.
Occipital epilepsy is a neurological disorder that arises from excessive neural activity in the occipital lobe of the brain that may or may not be symptomatic. Occipital lobe epilepsy is fairly rare, and may sometimes be misdiagnosed as migraine when symptomatic. Epileptic seizures are the result of synchronized neural activity that is excessive, and may stem from a failure of inhibitory neurons to regulate properly.
