What Is a Seizure?
It can be mild and barely noticeable or severe, causing unconsciousness and uncontrollable shaking.
Seizures usually happen suddenly, and their duration and severity can vary. Some people may have only one seizure, while others may experience them repeatedly. Frequent seizures are known as epilepsy. Less than 10% of people who have a seizure develop epilepsy.
What Happens During a Seizure?
The brain contains billions of neurons that communicate through chemical and electrical signals, allowing us to move, think, and speak. When these signals misfire, it can cause a seizure. The severity of the seizure depends on how many neurons are affected.
During a seizure, you might lose consciousness. Blood tests might show changes in certain chemicals as your body tries to cope with the situation while your brain is temporarily “offline.”
Seizure vs. Epilepsy
There are two types of seizures:
- Provoked Seizures: These are triggered by specific factors such as infections, abnormal blood sugar levels, drug reactions, alcohol withdrawal, lack of sleep, or flashing lights.
- Unprovoked Seizures: These occur without a clear cause. If you have two or more unprovoked seizures, you might be diagnosed with epilepsy. Epilepsy can run in families or be caused by head trauma, infections, tumors, or prenatal injuries. Some developmental conditions, like autism, can increase the risk of epilepsy.
Types of Seizures
Generalized Seizures
These involve the entire Brain from the start. Common types include:
- Tonic-clonic (Grand Mal): The most common type, characterized by stiffening and jerking of the limbs.
- Atonic: Sudden loss of muscle strength, risking falls.
- Clonic: Rare in adults, involves jerking movements on both sides of the body.
- Myoclonic: Involves brief, jerky movements, usually while awake.
- Tonic: Causes stiffening of the body, often during sleep.
- Absence: Brief loss of awareness, more common in children.
- Febrile: Convulsions due to high fever, typically in children.
- Infantile Spasms: Sudden stiffening of the body, usually stopping by age four.
Focal Seizures
These begin in one part of the Brain:
- Focal Onset Aware Seizure: Also known as simple partial seizures, where you remain conscious.
- Focal Onset Impaired Awareness Seizure: Also called complex partial seizures, where you may lose consciousness and perform involuntary actions.
Causes of Seizures
Seizures can be triggered by various conditions and events, including:
- Stroke
- Brain tumors
- Head injuries
- Electrolyte imbalances
- Low blood sugar
- Flashing lights
- Certain medications
- Drug or alcohol withdrawal
- Infections like meningitis
- High fever
- COVID-19
- Developmental brain issues
- Hormonal changes
- Toxins
- Eclampsia
- Degenerative brain diseases
Symptoms and Stages of Seizures
Seizures have different symptoms based on their type and stage:
- Prodrome: Early warning signs like trouble sleeping, mood changes, or anxiety.
- Aura: Sensory disturbances indicating the start of a seizure.
- Ictal Phase: The seizure itself, with symptoms like stiffening, jerking, confusion, or incontinence.
- Post-Ictal Phase: Recovery period with symptoms like weakness, soreness, and confusion.
What to Do If You See Someone Having a Seizure
- Stay with them until they are fully awake.
- Move them to a safe place once the seizure ends.
- Offer comfort and explain what happened.
- Check for a medical ID to understand their condition.
- Help them get home safely.
When to Call a Doctor
- The seizure occurs in water.
- It’s the person’s first seizure.
- They have a health condition like pregnancy or heart disease.
- The seizure lasts 5 minutes or more.
- They have difficulty breathing or walking afterward.
- Another seizure starts.
Diagnosing Seizures
Doctors will ask about your seizure history and perform neurological exams. They might also order tests like blood tests, EEGs, MRI, CT, or PET scans to identify brain problems.
Treating Seizures
Treatment options include:
- Medication: Anti-seizure drugs, though finding the right one may take time.
- Surgery: Removing the part of the brain causing seizures.
- Vagus Nerve Stimulation: Implanting a device to send signals to the brain.
- Responsive Nerve Stimulation: An implanted device that detects and stops seizures.
- Deep Brain Stimulation: Electrodes implanted in the brain to prevent seizures.
Preventing Seizures
To reduce the likelihood of seizures:
- Follow a ketogenic diet as advised by your doctor.
- Get enough sleep.
- Take medications as directed.
- Use rescue medications in emergencies.
- Limit alcohol intake.
- Avoid known triggers.
- Wear a seizure alert device for safety.
Takeaways
Various factors can trigger it, and it’s essential to consult a doctor to understand the cause and prevent future episodes
FAQ's
A seizure is a sudden burst of abnormal electrical activity in the brain that can cause various symptoms, from mild disruptions in awareness to severe convulsions and unconsciousness.
Epilepsy is a neurological disorder marked by repeated, unprovoked seizures. Diagnosis occurs after an individual experiences two or more such seizures.
Seizures can be caused by various factors, including head injuries, brain tumors, infections, electrolyte imbalances, drug or alcohol withdrawal, and certain medications. Sometimes, the cause remains unknown.
Seizures are generally categorized into two types: Generalized seizures: Affect the entire brain and include subtypes like tonic-clonic, atonic, clonic, myoclonic, tonic, and absence seizures. Focal seizures: Affect a specific part of the brain and include focal onset aware and focal onset impaired awareness seizures.
