EPILEPSY

By Alex van Ooy

Introduction
 Epilepsy is a neurological condition
characterized by unprovoked seizures
 Approximately 50 million people have
epilepsy
 There are over 40 types of epilepsies
most of them being very rare
 There is no medicinal cure for epilepsy
History
 Was originally thought to be a curse
 In 400 BCE Hippocrates suggested that
it was a dysfunction of the brain
 The 1494 witch hunting book suggest
seizures are a sign of witchcraft
Causes
 Some forms of epilepsy can be genetic
 Low levels of GABA have been linked to
epilepsy
 Head injuries
 Other disorders such as brain tumors,
Alzheimer's, and cerebrovascular
diseases
Seizures
 Seizures are a spike in electrical activity
in the brain
 Seizures can either be provoked by a
trigger (e.g. drugs or alcohol) or can be
unprovoked
 Seizures can be classified into two
categories: localized and generalized
Seizure Types
 Localized
Complex Partial Seizure
Simple Partial Seizure
 Generalized
Absence
Tonic
Myoclonic
Clonic
Tonic-Clonic (Grand Mal)
Types of epilepsy
 Frontal Lobe
 Temporal lobe
MTLE
LTLE
 Absence Epilepsy
 Photosensitive Epilepsy
Treatment
 Most common pharmaceutical treatment are
anticonvulsants
 About 70 percent of people with epilepsy are
able to manage it with drugs
 Even with anticonvulsants people can still
experience seizures called breakthrough
seizures
Surgery
 Resective surgery
Lobectomy
 Disconnective surgery
Corpus Callosotomy
Multiple Subpial Transections
 Hemispherectomy
Only done in severe cases in young children
Vagus Nerve Stimulation