Epilepsy

ComprehensiveEpilepsy Care at Medica

People who suffer from epilepsy are always at a risk of being overwhelmed by the sheer physical and emotional impact of uncontrolled seizures or the strong side effects from seizure medications. Epilepsy can strike anyone at any time. Males and females of various races, ethnic backgrounds, and ages are affected by epilepsy. What is needed is expert all-round comprehensive & specialized epilepsy management instead of specific symptoms based treatment.

Medica’s Comprehensive Epilepsy Care Program (CECP) caters to the diagnosis, treatment, awareness and overall welfare of people with epilepsy through its advanced medical, surgical and neuro-psychological management of the disease. It offers diagnosis and delivery of advanced epilepsy care, with world class expertise and state-of-the-art tools and technology for treating all forms of epilepsy, including its most complex conditions. Recurrent & unprovoked seizures are symptoms of Epilepsy. Epileptic fit needs medical attention. Rush to Emergency, if:

• The person having a seizure stops breathing for longer than 30 seconds.
• The seizure lasts longer than 3 minutes.
• More than one seizure occurs within 24 hours.
• The person having a seizure does not respond normally within 1 hour after the seizure.

Symptoms of Epilepsy

Seizures can disrupt any process that your brain coordinates since epilepsy is caused by aberrant brain activity. The following are some of the indications and symptoms of a seizure:

• Temporary perplexity
• A bout of staring
• Muscle spasms
• Jerking movements of the arms and legs that are uncontrollable
• Consciousness or awareness loss
• Fear, anxiety, or a sense of déjà vu are all psychological symptoms.

The severity of the symptoms varies based on the type of seizure the patient is experiencing. A person with epilepsy will, in most situations, experience the same sort of seizure every time, therefore the symptoms will be consistent from episode to episode.

Doctors divide seizures into two types: focal and generalized, depending on how and where the abnormal brain activity occurs. Your doctor will further explain your condition after conducting a few preliminary tests.

Causes of Epilepsy

The cause of epilepsy is unknown in six out of ten patients. Seizures can be caused by a variety of factors.

The following are some of the possible causes:

Infections: Epilepsy can be caused by meningitis, HIV, viral encephalitis, and various parasite illnesses.

Trauma: This condition can be caused by head trauma from a vehicle accident or another traumatic injury.

Prenatal Injury: Babies are vulnerable to brain injury before birth, which can be caused by a variety of circumstances such as the mother’s infection, poor nutrition, or oxygen deficiency. Epilepsy or cerebral palsy can be caused by brain injury.

Age: Epilepsy strikes most often in children and older adults, but it can strike anyone at any age.

Developmental Disorders: Epilepsy and developmental disorders like autism are sometimes linked.

Genetics: Some forms of epilepsy, which are classified according to the type of seizure or the portion of the brain affected, run in families. It’s conceivable that there’s a hereditary component in these occurrences.

Stroke: Stroke and other vascular illnesses can cause brain damage, which can lead to epilepsy. You can lower your risk of developing these diseases by reducing your alcohol intake and avoiding cigarettes, eating a nutritious diet, and exercising regularly.

Others: Other factors such as a history of dementia, brain tumors/cyst, maternal drug use, etc., can also cause a person to suffer from dementia.

Diagnosis

It’s possible that up to 500 genes are linked to epilepsy in some way. The chance of acquiring epilepsy before the age of 20 is roughly 1% for most persons. Having a parent with genetically related epilepsy increases your chances by 2 to 5%. To accurately diagnose your condition only will enhance your treatment results. Your doctor will do some or all of the following tests to determine if you have epilepsy and what type you have:

Treatment

Medications are usually used to treat epilepsy first. If drugs don’t work, doctors may recommend surgery or another treatment option.

Medication: There are about 20 different anti-seizure drugs on the market. The type of epilepsy medicine prescribed by your doctor is determined by the type of seizures you have, as well as other criteria such as your age and other medical conditions. Follow these measures to get the greatest seizure control possible with medication:

• Follow the directions on your prescription carefully.
• Before switching to a generic version of your medication or using any other prescription prescriptions, over-the-counter treatments, or herbal remedies, always see your doctor.
• Do not stop taking your prescription without first consulting your physician.
• If you detect new or increasing feelings of depression, suicidal thoughts, or odd changes in your mood or behaviour, call your doctor right once.
• If you suffer from migraines, tell your doctor. Anti-epileptic drugs may be prescribed by your doctor to prevent migraines and treat epilepsy.

Surgery: When medicine fails to keep seizures under control, surgery may be an alternative. A surgeon removes the part of your brain that causes seizures during epilepsy surgery.

Surgery is frequently performed when examinations reveal that:

• The source of your seizures is a small, well-defined area of your brain.
• Speech, language, motor function, vision, and hearing are not affected by the part of your brain that will be operated on.

When an open operation is too hazardous for some types of epilepsy, minimally invasive techniques like MRI-guided stereotactic laser ablation may be a useful therapeutic option. In these procedures, doctors use a thermal laser probe to damage the tissue in the brain that causes seizures in order to better manage the seizures.

Therapies: Apart from medications and surgery, alternative therapies such as vagus nerve stimulation, ketogenic diet, deep brain stimulation, responsive neurostimulation are suggested by your doctor as per your condition.