- See: Anticonvulsants:
- Partial Seizures:
- seizures beginning locally w/ specific sensory, motor or psychic aberration that reflects the affected part;
- partial seizures w/ elementary symptomatology (generally w/o impairment of consciousness);
- w/ motor symptoms (includes Jacksonian seizures)
- special sensory or somatosensory symtoms;
- w/ autonomic symptoms
- Partial Seizures w/ Complex Symtpomatology:
- generally w/ impairment of consciousness
- temporal lobe;
- in most cases pt has 1 to 2 min loss of contact w/ surroundings;
- pt may at 1st stagger, perform automatic purposeless movements, and utter unitelligible sounds;
- mental confusion may last for another 1-2 min;
- status psychomotor epilepsy may occur, in which the affected subjects act in a slow, bewildered, & sometimes confused state for hours or rarely days;
- Generalized Seizures:
- bilateral symmetrical and w/o local onset;
- affect both consciousness and motor function from the onset;
- Absences (petit mal)
- these are brief generalized seizures manifested by a 10-30 sec loss of consciousness, w/ eye or muscle fluttering and with or without a loss of muscle tone;
- patient suddenly stops any activity in which he is engaged and resumes it after the attack;
- petit mal are genetically determined & occur predominantly in children;
- Causes of Seizures;
- Anti-Epileptic Medication Not at Therapeutic Levels;
- Alcoholic Withdrawl w/ Delurium Tremens;
- Demerol Overdose; Especially in Elderly post-op Patient;
- Benzodiazepine withdrawl;
- Penicillin at high doses;
- Theophylline toxicity;
- Thorazine;
- CNS:
- Tumor;
- Previous Stroke;
- Previous Head Injury;
- Meningitis/Encephalitis;
- Idiopathic Epilepsy;
- Endocrine:
- Hypoglycemia;
- Misc;
- Hyponatremia;
- Uremia;
- Hypocalcemia;
- CNS Vasculitis;
- Hypomagnesemia;
- Hypertensive Encephalopathy
- Pseudoseizure;
- Hypoxia/Hypercapnia