Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a fairly common neurological disorder Neurological brain Disorder in which brain activity becomes abnormal, causing seizures or periods of unusual behavior, sensations, and sometimes loss of awareness. Anyone can develop epilepsy, but it’s more common in young children and older adults. It occurs slightly more in males than in females.

There are several reasons you might have a seizure. These include:

• high fever
• head trauma
• very low blood sugar
• alcohol withdrawal
• Failure to take prescribed anticonvulsant medications.

What causes epilepsy?

For the most people with epilepsy, the cause can’t be determined but a variety of things can lead to seizures.

Possible causes include:

• traumatic brain injury
• scarring on the brain after a brain injury (post-traumatic epilepsy)
• serious illness or very high fever
• stroke, which is a leading cause of epilepsy in people over age 35
• other vascular diseases
• lack of oxygen to the brain
• brain tumor or cyst
• dementia or Alzheimer’s disease
• maternal drug use, prenatal injury, brain malformation, or lack of oxygen at birth
• infectious diseases such as AIDS and meningitis
• genetic or developmental disorders or neurological diseases

  The Doctor epilepsy diagnosis based on symptoms, physical signs and the results of such tests as an electroencephalogram (EEG), computed tomography (CT or CAT scan) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).