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DEFINITION
Epilepsy is a medical condition that produces seizures
affecting a variety of mental and physical functions.
It’s also called a seizure disorder. When a
person has two or more seizures, they are considered
to have epilepsy.
A seizure happens when a brief, strong surge of
electrical activity affects part or all of the brain.
One in 10 adults will have a seizure sometime during
their life.
SYMPTOMS
Seizures can last from a few seconds to a few minutes.
They can have many symptoms, from convulsions and
loss of consciousness to some that are not always
recognized as seizures by the person experiencing
them or by health care professionals: blank staring,
lip smacking, or jerking movements of arms and legs.
DIAGNOSIS
There are many different types of seizures. The
kind of seizure a person has depends on which part
and how much of the brain is affected by the electrical
disturbance that produces seizures.
Treatments
Treatment for seizures involves either medical therapy
or surgery. Anticonvulsant (anti-seizure) medications
are typically used to treat this disorder.
Surgical options for epilepsy include procedures
to map and more effectively identify the regions
of the brain responsible for seizures, resections
of the area of the brain responsible for seizures,
and vagus nerve stimulation. Temporal lobectomy has
been proven to be superior to prolonged medical therapy
in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy. Surgery
is effective in reducing seizures in other regions
as well. Vagus nerve stimulation may be used as an
aid in reducing seizure frequency in patients with
partial onset epilepsy.
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