EPILEPSY

I believe the first time I saw a person have a seizure was before I went to medical school. I was doing some house work around the backyard when I heard some noise and scampering in our neighbour’s yard, just behind ours. The fences on both yards hadn’t been erected yet, so there was always a free view of the yard behind ours from the back of our house. When I looked in the direction of the noise, I saw that one of our neighbour’s daughters, a girl just around my own age had fallen to the ground, stretching and her siblings and everyone else had hurried to try to get her to get up. Some fetched water in a bucket and began pouring on her, some had holy water in small bottles and were sprinkling all over her, while some had hurried into the noise to call her parents. I later learnt from the neighbours that it wasn’t the first time as the girl was known to have had such episodes before. A lot of different things were believed about what was happening to her, some even said it was evil spirits and that holy water was the cure. Even then, I thought to myself that it must have been a seizure because I had read a few books by Dr. Ben Carson, where he wrote about his patients presenting with seizures and I had been curious enough to read more about it. I didn’t argue with what the people said because I knew it would be of no use but I was quite sure my neighbour’s daughter needed medical help.

WHAT IS EPILEPSY?

Epilepsy is a neurological (relating to the central nervous system) disorder  in which brain activity becomes abnormal, causing seizures (periods of unusual behavior and sometimes loss of awareness. Some of us have experienced someone having a seizure. The victims may fall to the ground and sometimes stretch their bodies in abnormal ways. That’s a seizure.  When a person has 2 or more seizures without any obvious cause, such a person is said to have epilepsy. Anyone can have a seizure, but people with epilepsy are more likely to have seizures over and over again.

HOW COMMON IS EPILEPSY?

Worldwide, about 50 million people have epilepsy, making it one of the most common neurological diseases globally. 

Nearly 80% of people with epilepsy live in low or medium income countries, of which Nigeria is one.

About 5million people are diagnosed with epilepsy yearly, worldwide. It affects both males and females and all ages and occurs worldwide. 

In Nigeria, about 8 out of 1000 people have epilepsy, which is quite a lot. 

WHAT CAUSES EPILEPSY?

Epilepsy can be caused by many things, but in about 50% of cases worldwide, the cause is unknown. The causes of epilepsy may include;

1. Brain damage before or after birth
2. Congenital anomalies or genetic conditions
3. A serious head injury
4. A stroke
5. An infection of the brain 
6. A brain tumor, etc

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS

The symptoms of epilepsy vary depending on the type of seizure the person has. There are many types and different manifestations of seizures. During a seizure, temporary symptoms occur, such as:

1. Loss of awareness or consciousness
2. Disturbance of movement, mood or sensation
3. Anxiety and depression
4. Fainting and fatigue
5. Memory loss
6. Temporary confusion
7. A staring spell
8. Uncontrollable jerking movement of the arms and legs
9. Fear

Some complications may also result from a seizure such as;

1. Fractures, from falling
2. Drowning, when a seizure occurs while bathing or swimming
3. Car accidents
4. Pregnancy complications
5. Emotional health issues, like depression, anxiety or suicidal thought or behavior, sometimes due to  stigma from others.

WHEN TO SEE A DOCTOR

One should see a doctor if:

1. You have a seizure for the first time
2. A patient known to have a seizure has a seizure which lasts for more than 5 minutes
3. Breathing or consciousness does not occur after the seizure has stopped
4. There is high fever
5. A second seizure follows immediately after
6. The person is pregnant
7. The person has diabetes mellitus
8. The person is injured after the seizure.
   You can speak with a doctor for free  on the flexicare hmo plan by initiating a message via the AI health messenger here or via your dashboard on the website.

TREATMENT

It is important to see a doctor if you have a seizure.

Treatment for a person with epilepsy may include:

1. Medicines called anti-epileptic drugs
2. Surgery, to remove a small part of the brain that is causing the seizures
3. A special diet called a ketogenic diet that helps control seizures may also be recommended.

Some people need treatment for a lifetime, but some do not, if the seizures stop after some time. A patient may also not need any treatment if they know their seizure triggers (things that can cause a seizure in some people with epilepsy), and are able to avoid them.

Some common seizure triggers may include:

1. Tiredness
2. Lack of sleep
3. Stress
4. Alcohol
5. Not taking medication
6. Recreational drug abuse
7. Flickering lights, including TV, computer screens etc
8. Infections
9. Others; loud music, noise, reading, hot baths, etc

PREVENTION

Prevention of seizures in an epileptic patient can be achieved by simply knowing and avoiding the triggers. 

So, next time you see a person having a seizure, I hope you approach them with less stigma and more empathy and understanding because as Nigerian folks will say, “it can happen to anybody”.