Several therapies exist for improving epilepsy symptoms. The most popular include vagus nerve stimulation, ketogenic diet, deep brain stimulation, and responsive nerve stimulation.

Therapies For Epilepsy Treatment

Some individuals that do not improve with epilepsy medication can consider surgery as a treatment option. If the abnormal portion of the brain is shown to be in a well-defined area, and does not interfere with areas of the brain that control vital functions, doctors may remove it to eliminate seizures.

Surgery For Epilepsy Treatment

Individuals with epilepsy that take anti-seizure/anti-epileptic medication often find that it eliminates seizures, and that they can stop taking the medication after a certain period of time. Children who stop experiencing symptoms can often live seizure-free without medication, and many adults can discontinue medication use after two years seizure-free. At least half of people diagnosed with epilepsy can become seizure-free with medication. Otherwise, it often decreases the frequency and intensity of seizures.

Anti-seizure/Anti-epileptic Medication

The primary methods of treatment for epilepsy include anti-seizure medication, surgery, and therapy.

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder in which brain activity becomes abnormal, resulting in seizures, unusual behavior, sensations, and lack of awareness. Symptoms may vary widely, and at least 2 seizures without a known cause at least 24 hours apart are usually required for an epilepsy diagnoses.

Epilepsy

Mayo Clinic. (n.d.). Epilepsy. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/epilepsy/symptoms-causes/syc-20350093


Epilepsy Mayo Clinic

In about half of cases, epilepsy has no identifiable cause. In the other half, epilepsy may be caused by genetic influence, head trauma, brain abnormalities, infections, prenatal injury, or developmental disorders

Epilepsy Causes

Symptoms of epilepsy vary widely. In most cases, an individual's seizure symptoms will be similar each time. Seizures can be categorized to focal seizures and generalized seizures.

Epilepsy Symptoms

Anyone can have epilepsy, regardless of gender, race, and age. Common risk factors are age, family history, head injuries, stroke/vascular diseases, dementia, brain infections, and seizures in childhood.

Epilepsy Risk Factors

Some complications are common, and result from having seizures at certain times. These include falling, drowning, car accidents, pregnancy complications, and emotional health issues.

Common Epilepsy Complications

Some complications of epilepsy are uncommon, but are life-threatening. These include status epilepticus and sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP).

Uncommon Epilepsy Complications

Epilepsy Treatments

People with epilepsy experience a higher than average amount of certain mood and psychological disorders. Some of these result directly from the effects of the abnormal brain activity seizures stem from, while others are secondary effects. However, most epileptics find they have no abnormal emotional or psychological symptoms.

Epilepsy Emotional and Psychological Effects

A 2019 study on adolescent epilepsy experience in Singapore. The study was a quantitative research review of the effects of childhood epilepsy on internal and external problems, psychiatric diagnosis, quality of life, social skills, and academic success as compared to the participants' peers.

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