different forms of Epilepsy
Did you know that there are different forms of epilepsy? In this article, Kayla Newman explains the different types of epilepsy-- focal, generalized, and unknown-- and the type of seizures that follow.
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Different Forms Of Epilepsy
Different Forms Of Epilepsy
By Kayla Newman
By Kayla Newman
Epilepsy is a neurological disease that occurs when an abnormality happens repetitively to the neurons in the brain, thus causing seizures. In Oct. 2017, the International League against Epilepsy pushed for a new classification system that made diagnosing epilepsy easier, more accurate, updated the terms, and better guidance for medical and surgical treatments. At the moment, there are three different categories of epilepsy: focal, generalized, and finally, unknown.
Photo by Epilepsy Action
Focal epilepsy affects one or more hemispheres of the brain. Focal epilepsy is completely treatable; according to John Hopkins Medicine, “Focal epilepsy may be treated with medication, and occasionally with diet, nerve stimulation or surgery, especially if the condition is due to a scar or other lesion in the brain.” A big part of focal epilepsy is what parts of the brain are affected. Some cases tend to be less severe than others. Frontal lobe seizures often are mistaken for mental health problems or sleep disorders. This type of seizure is short and sometimes occurs in clusters with it happening the most in the person’s sleep. Some of the symptoms of this include unusual body movements, twitching, cursing, swearing, or laughing. Occipital lobe seizures affect the eyes, such as eyelid fluttering, not being able to see as well or at all, seeing flashing colors, lights, and or patterns are just a few. Parietal lobe seizures mostly affect nerves and feelings. Numbness, tingling, prickling, crawling, and shock sensations are some of the symptoms. The last type of seizure of focal epilepsy is known as a temporal lobe seizure. This type of seizure affects one or both temporal lobes. They tend to be focal impaired awareness seizures, but sometimes the person can be aware of it for a short amount of time. Some of the symptoms of this can entail deja-vu, lip-smacking, repeated swallowing, chewing, feeling frightened, changes in skin tone, and heart rate. After a temporal lobe seizure, a person will often be confused or lose the ability to speak for a short amount of time. Focal epilepsy seizures are short and can last anywhere between a few seconds to two minutes
Generalized epilepsy affects the brain as a whole. The different types of seizures are absence seizures (also called petit mal seizures), myoclonic, tonic, clonic, tonic-clonic (formally known as grand mal seizures), and atonic seizures (also known as drop attacks). People experiencing generalized seizures will more than likely lose consciousness. A person experiencing a myoclonic seizure is awake and alert most of the time. They are most commonly triggered by either stress or sleep deprivation. These types of seizures usually result in spasms and jerks in muscle or muscle groups. Absence seizures are triggered by the brain being overactive or from flashing lights. The person will look like their staring in space for a few seconds before becoming alert again. Absence seizures often look like daydreaming and are most common in people under the age of 20. Tonic seizures are when the person experiences a sudden stiffness in their body that lasts for about 20 seconds. This usually occurs in their sleep and can be triggered by stress, missed medication doses, and sleep deprivation. Clonic seizures are triggered by a lot of the same situations. Clonic seizures involve rhythmic jerking movement, this is very similar to myoclonic and is hard to distinguish. While clonic seizures tend to be rare, tonic-clonic seizures are a lot more common. Finally, tonic-clonic is a mix of both tonic and clonic seizures. Before people experience this, they experience a seizure aura, which is a lot like an early warning system before it happens. Tonic-Clonic seizures can also be triggered by other health issues such as stroke or even low blood sugar. Many people will only experience tonic-clonic seizures once.
The last form of epilepsy is unknown. Unknown epilepsy is where it does not fit into focal or generalized. For example, if how the seizure started is not known, it will be categorized into the unknown category, then later moved into generalized or focal.
There are a few ways to diagnose epilepsy. According to the Epilepsy Society, a charity dedicated to helping epilepsy research and spreading information on it that is located in the United Kingdom, “Getting a diagnosis is not always easy as there is no single test that can diagnose epilepsy. Doctors gather lots of different information to assess the causes of seizures.” A doctor will start by reviewing the person's medical history and symptoms. From there, they will do a neurological exam where they look at behavior, motor skills, and mental function, along with a bunch of different symptoms, as well. Doctors may also order blood tests where they look for signs of infections, and different conditions that are correlated with epilepsy. From there a doctor may also want to do a variety of different brain scans. The most common one is Electroencephalogram or EEG for short. During this procedure, electrodes are placed on the scalp with a paste sort of substance or with a scalp where it will record brain activity. For people who deal with epilepsy, it is common for the patterns of the brain waves to change even when a seizure is not happening. A doctor may even suggest doing things that will cause seizures to happen, for example, sleep-depriving oneself. Another kind of EEG is a High-Density EEG. This is where they place the electrodes more closely together to better determine what part of the brain is affected. Computerized tomography or CT scan takes x-rays of the brain to look for any problems with the structure, such as cysts, tumors, or bleeding. Magnetic resonance imaging, also called an MRI, uses magnets and radio waves to create a detailed image of the brain. This helps doctors detect any abnormalities or lesions within the brain. There is a wide variety of different methods for diagnosing epilepsy.
In many cases, epilepsy cannot be completely cured, but it can be managed. The most common treatment is an anti-seizure medications (ASM for short). A large part of treating epilepsy is finding what works best for that person. Thankfully, other treatment options are available if ASM does not work. A Ketogenetic diet can help reduce the number of seizures and the severity of the seizure. This also includes other health benefits. According to Yale Medicine, “Yale physicians are using an implantable device to personalize therapy for those with certain types of Epilepsy.” This device is called Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) which is, in a sense, a pacemaker for the brain and helps control the electrical impulses in the brain.
Photo by Amino Science
Epilepsy affects everyone differently and looks different from person to person. In many cases, the seizures take place in the person's sleep or are so small that it is hard to notice. For people who suffer from more significant seizures, it is important to know their triggers and how to properly help them through them it.
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