Diagnosed with epilepsy

I wish to commend the management of Daily Trust for this column. It is indeed a blessing to readers. Kindly share information about epilepsy.  I have been diagnosed with it for two years now. Hassana V.   Epilepsy is a chronic disorder characterised by recurrent seizures which may vary from a brief lapse of attention […]

I wish to commend the management of Daily Trust for this column. It is indeed a blessing to readers. Kindly share information about epilepsy.  I have been diagnosed with it for two years now.

Hassana V.

 

Epilepsy is a chronic disorder characterised by recurrent seizures which may vary from a brief lapse of attention or muscle jerks to severe and prolonged convulsions.

The seizures are caused by sudden, usually brief, excessive electrical discharges in a group of brain cells (neurones). In most cases, epilepsy can be successfully treated with anti-epileptic drugs.

Epilepsy can be further explained as seizure episodes as a result of excessive electrical discharges in a group of brain cells. Different parts of the brain can be the site of such discharges. One seizure does not signify epilepsy (up to 10 per cent of people worldwide have one seizure during their lifetime). Epilepsy is defined as having two or more unprovoked seizures.

Signs and symptoms

Characteristics of seizures vary and depend on where in the brain the disturbance first starts and how far it spreads. Temporary symptoms occur such as:

1. 1. Loss of awareness or consciousness.
2. 2. Disturbances of movement, sensation (including vision, hearing and taste), mood, or other cognitive functions.
3. 3. People with seizures tend to have more physical problems such as fractures and bruising from injuries related to seizures.
4. 4. Psychological conditions such as anxiety and depression.

Approximately 50 million people live with epilepsy worldwide. The estimated proportion of the general population with active epilepsy (i.e. continuing seizures or with the need for treatment) at a given time is between for and 10 per 1,000 people.

Causes

Epilepsy is not contagious. The most common type of epilepsy, which affects six out of 10 people with the disorder, is called idiopathic epilepsy, and has no identifiable cause.

Epilepsy with a known cause is called secondary epilepsy.

Some of the causes of secondary epilepsy are:

1. 1. Brain damage from pre-natal or perinatal injuries (e.g. a loss of oxygen or trauma during birth and low birth weight).
2. 2. Congenital abnormalities or genetic conditions with associated brain malformation.
3. 3. Severe head injury.
4. 4. Stroke that restricts the amount of oxygen to the brain.
5. 5. Infection of the brain such as meningitis, encephalitis and neurocysticercosis.
6. 6. Certain genetic syndromes.
7. 7. Brain tumour.

Treatment

• Epilepsy can be treated easily and affordably with inexpensive daily medication. Recent studies in both low and middle income countries have shown that up to 70 per cent of children and adults with epilepsy can be successfully treated (i.e. their seizures completely controlled) with Anti-Epileptic Drugs (AEDs). It is possible to diagnose and treat most people with epilepsy at the primary healthcare level without the use of sophisticated equipment.
• Surgical therapy may be beneficial to patients who respond poorly to drug treatment.

Prevention

1. 1. Idiopathic epilepsy is not preventable. However, preventive measures can be applied to the known causes of secondary epilepsy.
2. 2. Preventing head injury is the most effective way to prevent post-traumatic epilepsy.
3. 3. Adequate perinatal care can reduce new cases of epilepsy caused by birth injury.
4. 4. The use of drugs and other methods to lower the body temperature of a feverish child can reduce the chance of febrile seizures.
5. 5. Central nervous system infections are common causes of epilepsy in tropical areas, where many low and middle income countries are concentrated.
6. 6. Elimination of parasites in our environment and education on how to avoid infections can be effective ways to reduce epilepsy worldwide. Example, those cases due to neurocysticercosis.