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Papers on the causes of epilepsy
Causes of epilepsy (essays)
Causes of epilepsy (essays)
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Epilepsy is a neurological disorder targeted at the central nervous system. Nerve cell activity in the brain is disrupted thus causing seizures and/or abnormal behavior. Symptoms are different from person to person, some stare off for a few seconds while others may have twitching sensations. 1 in 26 people in the US may develop a seizure disorder in their life. Eplipsy can cause temporary confusion, staring, uncontrollable involuntary movement, loss of awareness, and psychic symptoms. There are many possible causes for epilepsy: genetic, head injury, brain conditions, infectious diseases, developmental, and prenatal injury.
Doctors will run a medical history, as well as many tests. A blood test may be run, this is to look for infections and
genetic conditions. The most common test is an Electroencephalogram (EEG), this process involves putting electrodes on the scalp with paste to record electrical activity in the brain. The EEG will discover abnormal brain waves, people with true epilepsy normally has abnormal waves even when no seizure is present. A computerized tomography scan (CT scan) uses x-rays to obtain images of the brain. This may be used to detect lesions or abnormal tears to detect if that's the cause of seizures. Functional MRI (fMRI) can measure the change of blood flow that goes to specific parts of the brain, doctors will use these to identify critical brain functions to avoid during surgery. They may also use Positron emission tomography (PET) scan, this scan uses small doses of radioactive material that is injected into your vein. This also helps visualize abnormalities in the brain. Lastly, they may use Single-photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT) scan, this allows for a 3D map of the body's blood flow. Doctors will only use this if the MRI or EEG doesn't pinpoint any issues.
Many people with epilepsy usually have more than one type of seizure and may have other symptoms of neurological problems as well. The cause of epilepsy varies by age of the person, but the majority of the time the cause is unknown. Common causes of seizures by age in Elizabeth Otte’s case would be congenital conditions (Down’s syndrome; Angelman's syndrome; tuberous sclerosis and neurofibromatosis), genetics, head trauma, and progressive brain disease which is rare (Schechter & Shafer, Ltd., 2013, p.1). The diagnosis of epilepsy is based on medical history of the patients including family history of seizures. They ask several of questions to figure of what type of seizures the patients could possibly be suffering from. Doctors then preform test such as EEG, take blood, and study images of your brain. Epilepsy is treated by a neurologist specialist that may or may not subscribe medication depending on the severity and frequency of the seizures. Also treatment can be a change in the patients’ diet or
During the physical, the physician is not checking for oral cancer and the hygienist sees the patient at least twice a year. Not all exams are used to check for cancer, but you can also check for tonsil stones or salivary stones. One child patient had enlarged tonsils and she told the parent to come look. The parent was surprised and informed Annette that the child had strep throat often, with this extra information Annette suggested seeing the child’s primary care physician and possibly having the child’s tonsils removed. Annette said that if a patient has had a biopsy for possible oral cancer, especially smokers or tobacco consumers, she teaches them to do self-exams at home and informs them to do them once a month.
who administers a series of test that must be passed, which points out normal or abnormal
Seizures occur because of sudden surge of electrical activity in the brain. This cause is a temporary and disturbed in the messaging system between brain cells. Epilepsy may occur as a result of a genetic disorder or n acquired brain injury, such as trauma or stroke. There are four different kinds of seizures that can occur. Simple partial seizure, which is when the patient is conscious during the seizure in most cases, and the patient, is aware of his/her surrounding even when the seizure is in progress. Complex partial seizure is when the patient is conscious is impaired. The patient will generally not remember the seizure and if he/she does the recollection of it will be vague. Generalized seizure is when both halves of the brain have epileptic activity and the patient conscious is loss. Secondary generalized seizure is when epileptic activity starts as a partial seizure but then spread to both halves of the brain. The main symptom of epilepsy is repeated seizures. But, there are other symptoms such as short spells or black out or confused memory, panic or become fearful, repetitive movement that seem inappropriate, short period the person is unresponsive to instructions or questions etc.… There is no cure for epilepsy but overtime you can help it get better or find ways to adjust to it. You can also take medication, gob through surgery etc.… Epilepsy was a main point in the book because the main character Lia Lee was diagnosed with it. Her culture believed that it was a blessing rather than a disorder. Because of her culture it was impossible for Lia to be treated the way she supposed to be treated. Her parents did take her to get treatment and medication but they also utilized traditional healing methods. The family believed that little medicine and treatment was okay but not too much or that would stop the spiritual healing. In our presentation we talked
Epilepsy is a neurological disorder that affects the brain causing people to have seizures. A seizure is a big disruption of electrical communication between neurons, leading to the temporary release of excessive energy in a synchronized form Epilepsy is very unpredictable. Having a seizure disorder doesn't mean that you can only have one type of seizure. People can have many different types of seizures; it can vary on the person. In some cases depending on the type of seizures someone may have they can grow out of them. (“Epilepsy Foundation." What Is Epilepsy? N.p., n.d. Web. 09 May 2014.)
Epilepsy, also known as “seizure disorder,” or “seizure attack,” is the fourth most common neurological disorder known to mankind, affecting an estimated 2.3 million adults and 467,711 children in the United States. Unfortunately this disorder is becoming far more common and widespread worldwide. This staggering number of cases of people suffering from Epilepsy also involves an average growth rate of 150,000 new cases each year in the United States alone. Generally, many of the people who develop who are a part of the new are mainly either young children or older adults. Your brain communicates through chemical and electrical signals that are all specialized for specific tasks. However, through the process of communication, chemical messengers, also known as neurotransmitters can suddenly fail, resulting in what is known as a seizure attack. Epilepsy occurs when a few too many brain cells become excited, or activated simultaneously, so that the brain cannot function properly and to it’s highest potential. Epilepsy is characterized when there is an abnormal imbalance in the chemical activity of the brain, leading to a disruption in the electrical activity of the brain. This disruption specifically occurs in the central nervous system (CNS), which is the part of the nervous system that contains the brain and spinal cord. This causes an interruption in communication between presynaptic neurons and postsynaptic neurons; between the axon of one neuron, the message sender and the dendrite of another neuron, the message recipient. Consequently, the effects that epileptic seizures may induce may range anywhere from mild to severe, life-threatening ramifications and complications. There are many different types of seizures associa...
Epilepsy is characterized by uncontrolled excessive activity of either a part of, or all of the central nervous system. A person who is predisposed to epilepsy has attacks when the basal level of excitability of the nervous system rises above a certain critical threshold. As long as the degree of excitability is held below this threshold, no attack occurs. Basically, epilepsy can be classified into three major types: grand mal, petit mal, and focal or partial epilepsy.
Not everyone who has a seizure has epilepsy. Epilepsy is a chronic neurological disorder characterized by recurrent, unprovoked seizures. Unprovoked means that there is no immediate cause for the seizure, such as a fever, an infection of the brain, or head trauma. Nearly 10 percent of people will have a seizure during their lifetime; most of these are provoked seizures during an acute illness or condition. These people may never have epilepsy. There are two types of seizures people can have. One is partial seizure or focal they begin in one part of the brain. They cause varied symptoms auras which is a funny feeling in your stomach, staring, chewing, lip smacking, shaking, or stiffness in parts of the body. Generalized seizures are when the entire brain is effected. This causes loss consciousness. One type is grand mal is when the body stiffens and jerks. Another type is petit mal, which is momentary loss of consciousness without abnormal body movement. Some factors of this are infections of the brain this includes meningitis, encephalitis, and brain abscess. Strokes are also a risk of epilepsy. Also alcohol can cause seizures for heavy drinkers when they stop drinking abruptly (withdrawal seizures) and also have a good chance of epilepsy. Epilepsy can also cause brain tumors usually they are slow growing and don't affect them for years. Some other factors that cause epilepsy is age the risk of seizures is higher in young children. Also gender epilepsy is higher in males than in females. The most common treatment for epilepsy is the daily use of anticonvulsant or antiepilectic drugs to prevent seizures. These medications act on brain signals to limit hyperexcitability. While medications do not cure epilepsy, they allow many people to live normal, active lives. Other treatments are vagus nerve stimulation this treatment involves electronic stimulation of the brain using an implanted device like a pacemaker. Another is epilepsy surgery this is when a part of the brain that is causing the seizures is removed so that it prevents it from spreading to anther part of the brain.
Later, the doctors told me I had epilepsy, specifically the type known as grand mal. Immediately, the doctors put me on some medications to prevent the seizures. They also gave my parents a bunch of packets of information about epilepsy. When I got older, some of those packets informed me that 20-25 million people have suffered from an epileptic seizure. Many people grow out of childhood epilepsy or they take medicine to control it. However, there is still a risk of having a seizure even if you take medication. Over the past few years, I have become increasingly aware of the chance of a seizure at any time.
This source states that women living with epilepsy seem to face different issues than males with epilpesy do. The source states that the two sex hormones inside a woman's body, progesterone and estrogen, play a role in influencing seizures as both of these hormones interact with brain cells. Usually, there are equal amounts of progesterone and estrogen inside a woman's body. However, the problem occurs when the balance of these becomes unequal. It explains that estrogen is an excitatory hormone which basically means that it "makes brain cells give off more of an electrical charge". Prosgesterone, however, is an inhibitory hormone, meaning that it calms the cells - that have been electrically charged by the estrogen - down. The problem arises when the body starts producing more estrogen than progesterone which "can make the nervous system excitable" and can make a woman with epilepsy more exposed to seizures. The source emphasises that a change in hormones don't cause the seizures but they are able to inluence the occurence of seizures. About 10% - 12% of women (with epilepsy) have catamenial epilepsy which means that their seizures are directly affected by their menstrual cycle. The seizures tend to occur when a lot of estrogen is present during the body such as during ovulation. For some others, the seizures can occur when the progesterone levels in the body drop such as during menstruation. It is said that as many as" 40% of menstrual cycles in women with epilepsy do not release an egg" and that women with epilepsy generally produce eggs less often than the normal ...
Epilepsy is a condition characterized by recurrent seizures which are unprovoked by any immediately identifiable cause (Hopkins & Shorvon, 1995). It is also known as a seizure disorder. A wide range of links and risk factors are associated with the condition, but most of the time the cause is unknown. Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological disorders, affecting approximately two and half million people in the US and about 50 million worldwide. Though seizures can occur at any age, epilepsy is most commonly seen in children and the elderly. Most respond well to treatment and can control their seizures, but for some it is a chronic illness. A clinical diagnosis is the first step to finding a potential cure for the disorder.
This paper is going to discuss the condition Epilepsy. Epilepsy is defined as a disorder of the brain characterized by the recurrence of unprovoked seizures (Shorvon, 2009). Epilepsy starts in your brain, the brain is like a computer, it is made up of a mass of cells, called neurons, which connect to each other in very complicated ways (Routh, 2004). Electrical messages are constantly being passed from one neuron to another down nerves to the muscles in the body (Mair, 2004). If a person has epilepsy, these cells sometimes send a sudden, unexpected burst of electrical impulses, which causes a seizure (Routh, 2004). When the seizure finishes the brain behaves normally again. For some people with epilepsy these seizures happen every day. For others they may happen only once or twice a year (Routh, 2004). There are over 40 different types of seizure and each person is slightly different, but there are a few common types (Routh, 2004). Generalized seizures which affect the whole brain and partial seizures which affect a small part of the brain (Miller, 2013). The most common types of ge...
Imaging tests. Imaging tests usually aren’t necessary, but in some instances, especially when no evidence of infection is found, They may be helpful. For example, an X-ray or ultrasound may help out other potential causes inflammation, such as a tumor or structure
They test many types of samples in the lab such as skin or body fluids like blood and urine. Lab techs have the responsibility to not only perform the test but to record the results and get the results where they need to be. Blood tests can indicate many different conditions such as a hormone imbalance or blood type. This is very important because if someone receives a blood type that is not compatible with their own blood, the patient could die. Skin and tissue samples can also lead to a diagnosis. They can run tests to see if a sample reacts to something or doesn’t react to something. This is how the lab tech helps to diagnose.
We concluded that the benefits of regular checkups included early detection of diseases, huge monetary savings and finally, decrease the chance of disruption of personal or family income. It also clear that medical checkup was essential for both men and women. Today, we will discuss the different test and screening for women. In most cases, what test, your doctor recommends will depend on your age, general health condition, and family history among others. Common test and screenings for women include: