All you need to know about Epilepsy!

Epilepsy occurs when there is an electricity disturbance in your brain. Different people contract different types of epilepsy hence they suffer in a different way.

Types of Epilepsy and Symptoms

Partial Epilepsy: As the name itself suggests, partial epilepsy occurs in a specific part of the body. Due to this, the affected area is not the whole body yet the part where the neurological disorder takes place. When you contract partial epilepsy, these are the symptoms you are most likely to go through:-

• Movements with a jerk
• Feelings of dizziness
• Your motions might be repetitive
• You might stare at a blank space for quite some time or encounter confusion an encounteringe emotional changes

Generalized Epilepsy: Again, as the name suggests, this epilepsy is more of a serious kind as it affects the whole brain and not any specific area. Hence,the patient experiences a set of different symptoms when he contracts generalized epilepsy. These symptoms are:-

• convulsions
• twitching motions
• falling down
• being unconscious at frequent intervals
• biting the tongue
• loss of bladder control
• Body stiffness

Causes of Epilepsy

Like so many diseases, the cause of Epilepsy has also not been unearthed by science as of late. However, there have been some threats which may cause epilepsy and are pointed out by doctors, scientists. However, children are more likely to develop epilepsy as compared to adults. The following factors may contribute to epilepsy:-

• Brain contusions as a result of head injuries
• When a person contracts Alzheimer’s disease
• Stroke
• Lack of oxygen at the time of birth
• Brain tumor
• Brain arteries hardening

Diagnosis

First, it might be the case that you have another medical condition and not epilepsy which produces the epilepsy-like symptoms. So it is imperative that you first visit a doctor and tell him all about your medical history, he may point out the underlying cause for the symptoms.

Secondly, a CBC test (complete blood count) should be given. The CBC test determines if there is any infection or lack of electrolytes in the brain. Yet, the most important test of all to determine if you have contracted a case of epilepsy or not is the electroencephalogram (EEG).  This test records the brain’s electrical activity and monitors for any abnormal spikes or patterns. Various kinds of epilepsy can be diagnosed based on the patterns.

Treatment of Epilepsy

Drugs mostly dominate the treatment of epilepsy, though there are other options involved as well such as surgery. These are the main type of drugs that treat epilepsy:-

• primidone (Mysoline)
• topiramate (Topamax)
• gabapentin (Neurontin)
• clonazepam (Klonopin)

Remember, these drugs have side effects as well hence it is strictly advised that you take these medications based on an expert’s opinion. Also, after following the dosage and medication for a certain time, if the drugs are not improving your condition, surgery and dietary changes should be included as an option.

There exists no way to prevent epilepsy. However, once when it is contracted, it can be cured and treated.