WATCH: What is epilepsy and what causes it?
“Epilepsy is a chronic, neurological disorder that causes interference with your brain’s electrical system.
The following content was compiled by ER24 early this month in honour of the National Epilepsy Week. Quite often this disorder and those suffering from it are misunderstood.
ER24 would like to use this opportunity to highlight the facts over fiction and equip readers to quickly identify whether someone is suffering a seizure.
What is epilepsy?
“Epilepsy is a chronic, neurological disorder that causes interference with your brain’s electrical system. This change in electrical impulses may cause brief changes in movement (such as unprovoked or recurrent seizures), behaviour, feeling, or awareness,” explains Dr Robyn Holgate, ER24’s Chief Medical Officer.
She further explains that “seizures, abnormal movements or behaviour due to unusual electrical activity in the brain, are symptoms of epilepsy. But not all people who appear to have seizures have epilepsy. Approximately 10% of the population will have seizures, and approximately 1% will be diagnosed with epilepsy.
What causes epilepsy?
According to Dr Holgate, there are many causes of epilepsy, most can be categorised according to the age of onset, or a cause may never be found. Some epilepsies are genetic.
Epilepsy has no identifiable cause in about half the people with the condition. In the other half, the condition may be traced to various factors, including:
- Head trauma as a result of a car accident or other traumatic injury.
- Brain conditions, such as brain tumours or strokes, can cause epilepsy. Stroke is a leading cause of epilepsy in adults older than age 35.
- Infectious diseases, such as meningitis, AIDS and viral encephalitis, can cause epilepsy.
•Prenatal injury. Before birth, babies are sensitive to brain damage that could be caused by several factors, such as an infection in the mother, poor nutrition or oxygen deficiencies. This brain damage can result in epilepsy or cerebral palsy.
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