Seizure Information

Autism Resources

Generalized Seizures

ABSENCE (non-convulsive) ("petit mal")
- starts without warning
- glazed look and stares
- does not know what is happening
- can not recall things that occurred before the seizure
- seconds (brief)
- ends abruptly, with child alert
- no confusion afterward
- may occur many times a day
- can often be produced with hyperventilation (20 deep breaths)
- consciousness is altered
- EEG pattern is three per second spikes and waves
- easily treated; usually outgrown

ATYPICAL ABSENCE SEIZURE
- similar to absence seizure
- may have more pronounced motor symptoms (tonic or clonic spells)
- may have automatisms (like in complex partial seizures)
- more common with a damaged nervous system
- often associated with other types of seizures
- often has "a typical" EEG
- may last longer than typical absence seizure
- more difficlut to control with medictions thatn Typical Absence Seizures

MYOCLONIC SEIZURE
- abrupt (sudden) jerks of muscle groups
- abrupt increase in tone in a muscle group resulting in sudden movement of that part of the body
- in extensor muscles, head thrown back, back arches, legs extend, may be thrown backward to the ground
- often only one manifestation of a mixed seizure disorder commonly assicated with mental retardation
- like being jolted by an electric shock
- repeated myoclonic jerks can be a difficult to control form of epilepsy

ATONIC SEIZURES
- like myoclonic; are sudden single events
- difficult to control
- sudden loss of tone or posture; head slumps forward
- generalized seizure
- seizures involving sudden changes in tone may have either myoclonic or
atonic seizures, and often both

TONIC-CLONIC SEIZURES
(Tonic Phase)
- stiffens and loses consciousness and falls to the ground
- eyes roll back , head goes back, back arches, arms stiffen, legs stiffen
- like myoclonic, but tonic phase happens more slowly
(Clonic Phase)
- rhythmic jerking - fists clenched, arms repeatedly flex at elbows, then relax briefly
- legs flex at the hip and knee joint in a similar fashion
- head may flex and fall backwards
- movements are rhythmic and rapid, several per second and then slowing (NOT flailing or trembling seen in imitationor pseudo seizures)
- end of jerking is usually accompanied by a deep sigh, after which normal breathing resumes (Post-Ictal State)
- seizure over, child is NOT awake and will not respond
- can be wakened, but may feel tired and confused
- muscles may be sore
N.B. Seizure may only have tonic, or only clonic before post-ictal state

CLONIC SEIZURE
- rhythmic jerking of an extremety or the whole body
- rare
- seldom occur without a preceeding tonic phase (usually second component of tonic-clonic seizure)

Partial (Focal) Seizures

- eyes, head and body will turn away from the side of the body where the seizure is located: for the right side of the body, vision is in the left brain occipital lobe, and speech is in the left brain Temperal lobe
- abdominal sensation (cramps, discomfort) may indicate mesial temporal lobe - Insula (middle)
- emotions of fear, increased blood pressure, increased heart rate, paleness or facial flushing and memory storage (flashbacks or feelings) may occur, and may indicate mesial temporal lobe - hippocampus
- seizures beginning in temporal lobes may stay focal or may spread rapidly to other structures in the brain, and may spread throughout the brain (generalized seizure)
- if a focal seizure spreads to the central structures (Corpus callosum) near the frontal lobe, then there may be
* loss of awareness
* staring
* lip smacking
* picking at one's clothes
* wandering around aimless and confused (automatisms)

COMPLEX PARTIAL SEIZURE (or partial complex seizure)
- alters awareness or consiousness
- starts focal, then,
* both sides of cortex dysfunction at same time, or,
* interuption of the communication between cortex and more central part of the brain
- seizure starts (like absence seizure) and child stops, stares, and is unaware of his environment
- in addition, there is often a period of confusion after the child stops staring
- child may get up and wander around the room, pick at his clothes, and fail to respond appropriately
- if child is restrained, the child may lash out and even become highly agitated
- gentle guidance and supervision at such times is far better than trying to make him sit down
- child may remember the beginning of the seizure, when he possible felt the aura (warning signs)
- may be vaguely aware of people responding to his behavior during and after the seizure

SIMPLE PARTIAL SEIZURE
- causes sensation or movement
- sensory symptoms include individual sensations in a part of the body
(temporal lobe source produces smells, tastes, fears or memories)
- movement can involve motor control of face, hand and leg

TERMS USED REGARDING SEIZURES AND EPILEPSY

Aura - if the child does have an aura, point out that it can be a useful warning; encourage him to pay attention to an aura so that he can avoid harmful situations

Deja Vu - deja vu may occur, which is a sensation that you have seen something or someone before, whether or not you have. This sensation is normal and common, but when it occurs repeatedly, it can be a manifestation of Complex Partial Seizures eminating from the temporal lobe

Epilepsy - Recurrent (two or more) seizures not provoked by sepcific events such as trauma, infection, fever, or chemical changes. Seizures may take many forms. Patterns of epilepsy that are similar and have a predictable outcome are termed epileptic syndromes

Epilectic cephalalgia - The headache that follows some seizures. Seizures increase blood flow to the brain, resulting dilation of blood vessels may cause a post-seizure headache. Migraine headaches can be mistaken for epileptic cephalalgia.

Epileptogenic - Susceptible to a seizure. Areas of the brain more susceptible to seizures than other areas are considered epileptogenic. The temporal and frontal lobes are usually more epileptogenic than other regions

Hyperventilate - To over-breathe. A physician may instruct your child to take a number of deep breathes for two to four minutes. This over-ventilation may couse an absence or complex partial seizure, which can then be observed by your doctor. Rapid breathing during exercise is rarely assoicted with a seizure. Anxiety may cause an individual to over-breathe or to hyperventilate

Idiopathic - Of unknown cause. Seizures are called "idiopathic seizures" if no cause can be found. Causes are found in more than half of the children experienceing seizures. Idiopathic seizures often have a better coutcome than those that are "sympomatic," that is, for which cause can be found.

Lennox-Gastout syndrome - A condition that includes two or more types of seizures, one of which is the akinetic (a tonic, falling-down type). Absence seizures and generalized tonic-clonic seizures, occuring particularly at night, are common. The EEG shows generalized slow spike or poly-spike and slow wave abnormalities. Mental retardation is common and often progressive. This is a severe seizure type and one that is difficult to control.

Pseudo-seizures - Events that resemble seizures but are not caused, as a seizure is, by electrical abnormalities in the brain. Pseudo-seizures may be a child's conscious imitation of seizures, a way of coping with stress, or it may be subconsious. Pseudo-seizures often occur in persons who also have true seizures and may be difficult to differentiate from true seizures.

Seizure - A paroxysmal (episodic) electrical discharge of neurons (nerve cells) in the brain resulting in alteration of function or behavior. There are many different forms of seizures, depending on where in the brain the activity starts and on the direction and rapidity of its spread in the brain.

I also hope you understand I am not a doctor or seizure specialist. I am just trying to pass on information I found very helpful as we learned about the seizures our son was experiencing.(from Lisa S)