The human brain requires an orderly, organized, coordinated discharge of electrical impulses to have it function in normalcy. Electrical impulse enables the brain to communicate with the spinal cord, nerves, and muscles as well as within itself, and when the brain’s electrical activity is disrupted or periodically disturbed, some degree of temporary brain dysfunction may happen and results seizure disorders.
Seizure disorders commonly begin in early childhood or in late adulthood. About 2% of adults have a seizure at some time during their life, and two thirds of these people never noted to have another one.
Many people experience unusual sensations just before a seizure starts. Some seizures cause involuntary shaking and loss of consciousness, while others sometimes, people simply stop moving or become unaware of what is happening.
The brain is made up of nerve cells. Nerve cells talk to each other through electrical signals. Seizures happen if too many nerve cells send signals all at once.
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Types Of Seizures
Epileptic seizures are unprovoked seizure disorder or epilepsy that’s often have unknown (called idiopathic epilepsy) causes. Some are associated with various brain disorders, such as structural abnormalities, strokes, or tumors, and has symptomatic epilepsy (most common among newborns and older people) cases. One seizure is not considered epilepsy, commonly, they occur two or more times to be Epileptic type.
Nonepileptic seizures are triggered (provoked) by a reversible disorder or a temporary condition that irritates the brain, such as an infection, a head injury, or a reaction to a drug. In children, a fever can trigger a nonepileptic seizure (called a febrile seizure). Certain mental disorders can cause symptoms that resemble seizures, called psychogenic nonepileptic seizures or pseudoseizures.
During a seizure, a person may:
Fall down and start shaking
Become unconscious or confused
Usually after a few minutes, the nerve cells start to behave normally and the person returns to normal.
Causes
Doctors may not always know what makes a person have a seizure disorder. They suspect the diagnosis based on symptoms, imaging of the brain, blood tests, and electroencephalography (to record the brain’s electrical activity) to initially identify the cause. If your first seizure happens when you’re a baby, the cause is usually different than if your first seizure happens when you’re an adult.
If the first seizure happens before age 2, common causes are: High fevers or temporary metabolic abnormalities, such as an abnormal blood level of sugar (glucose), calcium, magnesium, vitamin B6, or sodium, can trigger one or more seizures. Since the seizures do not occur once the fever or abnormality resolves, if still, the seizures recur without triggers, causes likely to be an injury during birth, a birth defect, or a hereditary metabolic abnormality or a brain disorder.
2 to 14 years: Often, the cause is unknown
Adults: A head injury, stroke, or tumor may damage the brain, causing a seizure. Alcohol withdrawal is a common cause of seizures. However, in about half of people in this age group, the cause is unknown
Older adults: The cause may be a brain tumor or stroke. Seizures with no identifiable cause are called idiopathic.
Treatment
Long-Term Drug Therapy
If needed, drugs can usually help prevent seizures. Different patients require different drugs, there is no single drug that controls all types of seizures. Some patients require multiple drugs for treatment indefinitely, some long term antiseizure drugs can be added to your choices. https://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/neurologic-disorders/seizure-disorders/drug-treatment-of-seizures#v8547604
Vagus Nerve Stimulation
A procedure that reduces the number of focal-onset seizures by ≥ 50% in about 40% of patients can definitely be a choice for someone who’s suffering from a seizure disorder. Intermittent electrical stimulation of the left vagus nerve with an implanted pacemaker-like device (vagus nerve stimulator) is used as an adjunct to drug therapy in patients who have intractable seizures and are not candidates for conventional epilepsy surgery.
Brain Responsive Neurostimulation
In one study, RNS reduced seizures by 70% (median) in patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy during a follow-up period of 6 years. RNS system is a programmable neurostimulator device that is implanted intracranial and connected to cortical strip leads that are surgically placed in up to 2 seizures foci within the brain. It directly stimulates the seizure focus, with the aim of disrupting epileptiform activity before a seizure develops.
Medical Marijuana
Medical Marijuana proved its medicinal effects in creating better and normal function of the brain. The brain uses neurotransmitters, which are chemical communication systems between the brain and other parts of the body. Neurotransmitters carry chemical messages to structures known as receptors for interpretation and could potentially cure seizure disorders. You’ll never worry about how purchase it since you can grow it yourself in your own home comforts. Feminized seeds, like Sonoma Marijuana Seeds can definitely offer you bulk seeds and strains to cultivate.
Surgery
About 10 to 20% of patients have intractable seizures refractory to medical treatment and are potential candidates for conventional epilepsy surgery. Seizures that originate from a focal, resectable area in the brain, usually improves seizure control markedly while those that’s focusing in the anteromesial temporal lobe, resection eliminates seizures in about 60% of patients. Surgery requires extensive testing and monitoring, these patients are best treated in specialized epilepsy centers. After surgical resection, some patients remain seizure-free without taking antiseizure drugs, but many still require the drugs, but in reduced doses and possibly as monotherapy.