Many of us have not even heard of such a disease as epilepsy. What is this disease and what are its symptoms? In this article, you will find answers to the most important questions regarding this disease.
Epilepsy - what is it?
This is the name of a chronic brain disease caused by excessive hypersynchronous discharge of cortical neurons. Worldwide, just over 1% of people suffer from this pathology. Most often, the disease manifests itself in adolescence and childhood. Most patients can socially adapt, participate in public life, work.
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Idiopathic
This form of the disease becomes noticeable at an early age. She is characterized by seizures. At the same time, no intellectual disorders and changes are observed on MRI. With anticonvulsant therapy, a positive trend is possible. However, spontaneous remissions can often occur. Idiopathic epilepsy is inherited, the probability of having a child with pathology is 10%.
Symptomatic
This type of disease appears as a result of organic brain damage. It can occur even during fetal development. As a rule, the causes of this pathology are as follows: fetal hypoxia, infectious diseases, birth injuries, cortical dysplasia, malformations of the brain, toxemia of pregnancy. In a newborn, epilepsy can occur after a traumatic brain injury, neurointoxication, arteriovenous malformation, and stroke. The symptomatic form is characterized by seizures associated with loss of consciousness.
Signs
Answer the question "epilepsy - what is it?" impossible without specifying the main symptoms of this disease. An attack of the disease, as a rule, begins with the fact that a person falls to the floor, uttering a sharp cry. His eyes are fixed, they look forward or rotate. As a result of the fact that all the muscles of the body contract, the hands of a person are compressed, and the whole body convulsively twitches. Usually the attack begins suddenly, and the patient simply does not have time to take precautionary measures: lie down gently or warn others. Blueness of the face, tilting of the head, convulsions, waving of the arms, bending of the legs - all these conditions are caused by epilepsy. Neurology, studying this disease, points to the fact that during an attack a person is able to temporarily "disconnect" from reality. Therefore, do not try to force the convulsions to stop.
Some recommendations
When an epileptic attack occurs, take care that the patient cannot harm himself.
Remove any tight clothing, turn him over on his side and make sure there is nothing in his mouth that could cause choking. As a rule, the attack lasts several minutes.
Treatment
Having understood the question of epilepsy - what it is, we should consider the main points in the treatment of this pathology. After a comprehensive diagnosis, the doctor prescribes the most appropriate methods and means of treatment. In addition to drugs, psychotherapy, hypnosis and other methods are used to help reduce the number of seizures.
