Epilepsy Other names Seizure disorder Generalized 3 Hz spike-and-wave discharges on an electroencephalogram Medical specialty Neurology Symptoms Periods of vigorous shaking, nearly undetectable spells[ 1] Duration Long term[ 1] Causes Unknown, brain injury , stroke , brain tumors , infections of the brain, birth defects [ 1] [ 2] [ 3] Diagnostic method Electroencephalogram, ruling out other possible causes[ 4] Differential diagnosis Fainting , alcohol withdrawal , electrolyte problems [ 4] Treatment Medication, surgery , neurostimulation , dietary changes[ 5] [ 6] Prognosis Controllable in 69%[ 7] Frequency 39 million / 0.5% (2015)[ 8] Deaths 125,000 (2015)[ 9]
A video of a seizure
Someone who has bitten the tip of their tongue while having a seizure
Epilepsy is a chronic condition of the brain . It is characterized by seizures that do not seem to have an obvious cause.[ 10] [ 11] To the outside viewer, these seizures show as episodes of heavy shaking.[ 12] Depending on the seizure, the shaking may be short and difficult to detect or it may be longer.
People with epilepsy are sometimes called epileptic , but it is the fit or seizure that is "epileptic".
Many people have died from seizures.
↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Epilepsy Fact sheet" . WHO . February 2016. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2016 .
↑ McPhee SJ, Hammer GD (2010). "7". In Hammer GD, McPhee SJ (eds.). Pathophysiology of disease : an introduction to clinical medicine (6th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill Medical. ISBN 978-0-07-162167-0 .
↑ Goldberg EM, Coulter DA (May 2013). "Mechanisms of epileptogenesis: a convergence on neural circuit dysfunction" . Nature Reviews. Neuroscience . 14 (5): 337–49. doi :10.1038/nrn3482 . PMC 3982383 . PMID 23595016 .
↑ 4.0 4.1 Longo DL, Fauci AS, Harrison TR, Kasper DL, Hauser SL, Jameson JL, Loscalzo J (2012). "369 Seizures and Epilepsy". Harrison's principles of internal medicine (18th ed.). McGraw-Hill. p. 3258. ISBN 978-0-07-174887-2 .
↑ Bergey GK (June 2013). "Neurostimulation in the treatment of epilepsy". Experimental Neurology . 244 : 87–95. doi :10.1016/j.expneurol.2013.04.004 . PMID 23583414 . S2CID 45244964 .
↑ Martin-McGill, Kirsty J.; Jackson, Cerian F.; Bresnahan, Rebecca; Levy, Robert G.; Cooper, Paul N. (7 November 2018). "Ketogenic diets for drug-resistant epilepsy" . The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews . 11 (11): CD001903. doi :10.1002/14651858.CD001903.pub4 . ISSN 1469-493X . PMC 6517043 . PMID 30403286 .
↑ Eadie MJ (December 2012). "Shortcomings in the current treatment of epilepsy". Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics . 12 (12): 1419–27. doi :10.1586/ern.12.129 . PMID 23237349 . S2CID 207221378 .
↑ Vos, Theo; Allen, Christine; Arora, Megha; Barber, Ryan M.; Bhutta, Zulfiqar A.; Brown, Alexandria; Carter, Austin; Casey, Daniel C.; Charlson, Fiona J.; Chen, Alan Z.; Coggeshall, Megan; Cornaby, Leslie; Dandona, Lalit; Dicker, Daniel J.; Dilegge, Tina; Erskine, Holly E.; Ferrari, Alize J.; Fitzmaurice, Christina; Fleming, Tom; Forouzanfar, Mohammad H.; Fullman, Nancy; Gething, Peter W.; Goldberg, Ellen M.; Graetz, Nicholas; Haagsma, Juanita A.; Hay, Simon I.; Johnson, Catherine O.; Kassebaum, Nicholas J.; Kawashima, Toana; et al. (October 2016). "Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 310 diseases and injuries, 1990-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015" . Lancet . 388 (10053): 1545–1602. doi :10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31678-6 . PMC 5055577 . PMID 27733282 .
↑ Wang, Haidong; Naghavi, Mohsen; Allen, Christine; Barber, Ryan M.; Bhutta, Zulfiqar A.; Carter, Austin; Casey, Daniel C.; Charlson, Fiona J.; Chen, Alan Zian; Coates, Matthew M.; Coggeshall, Megan; Dandona, Lalit; Dicker, Daniel J.; Erskine, Holly E.; Ferrari, Alize J.; Fitzmaurice, Christina; Foreman, Kyle; Forouzanfar, Mohammad H.; Fraser, Maya S.; Fullman, Nancy; Gething, Peter W.; Goldberg, Ellen M.; Graetz, Nicholas; Haagsma, Juanita A.; Hay, Simon I.; Huynh, Chantal; Johnson, Catherine O.; Kassebaum, Nicholas J.; Kinfu, Yohannes; et al. (October 2016). "Global, regional, and national life expectancy, all-cause mortality, and cause-specific mortality for 249 causes of death, 1980-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015" . Lancet . 388 (10053): 1459–1544. doi :10.1016/s0140-6736(16)31012-1 . PMC 5388903 . PMID 27733281 .
↑ Commission on Epidemiology and Prognosis, International League Against Epilepsy (1993). "Guidelines for epidemiologic studies on epilepsy. Commission on Epidemiology and Prognosis, International League Against Epilepsy" . Epilepsia . 34 (4): 592–6. doi :10.1111/j.1528-1157.1993.tb00433.x . PMID 8330566 . S2CID 3264819 .
↑ Blume W, Lüders H, Mizrahi E, Tassinari C, van Emde Boas W, Engel J (2001). "Glossary of descriptive terminology for ictal semiology: report of the ILAE task force on classification and terminology" . Epilepsia . 42 (9): 1212–8. doi :10.1046/j.1528-1157.2001.22001.x . PMID 11580774 . S2CID 10894926 . {{cite journal }}
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↑ "Epilepsy" . Fact Sheets. World Health Organization . October 2012. Retrieved January 24, 2013 .