Epilepsy in Children

Best Child Hospital Epilepsy Treatment in Jaipur Rajasthan

 

A seizure (fit /attack) is caused by abnormal electrical activity in the brain. Many factors may influence the risk of having a seizure. Children with epilepsy have repeated seizures.

Not all seizures are epileptic, for example, febrile seizures are not considered epilepsy.

 

Why does my child have epilepsy?

Some children develop epilepsy as a result of their brain being injured in some way. This could be due to a severe head injury, difficulties at birth, tumors, bleeding or an infection which affects the brain such as meningitis. Kids with Down syndrome, autism, and some metabolic disorders also may have epilepsy. Some types of epilepsy run in families.

More than half of epilepsy cases are idiopathic, meaning there’s no clear cause, but this is changing as more genetic mutations are found.

Sleep deprivation, genetic factors, hormonal factors can influence an individual’s seizure threshold.

 

Types of Seizures

There are different types of seizures. Some seizure manifestations can be:

  • Repeated jerking of the body (convulsions)
  • Repetitive movements
  • unusual sensations such as a strange taste in the mouth or a strange smell, or a rising feeling in the stomach.
  • Absence seizures (Look like daydreaming)
  • Sudden jerks of the body

In some types of seizure, a child may be aware of what is happening. In other types, a child will be unconscious and have no memory of the seizure afterwards.

 

Diagnosis of Epilepsy

To diagnose epilepsy, many types of tests may be needed, such as blood and urine tests, EEG or electroencephalography, MRI or CT scan of the brain, and genetic studies.

 

Treatment

Epilepsy is usually treated with medicines called anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs). Although AEDs aim to stop seizures from happening, they do not cure epilepsy.

If AEDs don’t help your child, Ketogenic Diet and Epilepsy surgery are some of the options that are offered in children with difficult-to-treat epilepsy.