Epilepsy
According to the A.D.A.M. Encyclopedia epilepsy is defined as a brain disorder in which a person has repeated seizures (convulsions) over time. Seizures are episodes of disturbed brain activity that cause changes in attention or behavior. There are many causes for epilepsy. Some of the main causes are stroke, traumatic brain injury and infections like meningitis, AIDS and some more. Many of the individuals with epilepsy have the disease and you will never even notice unless they are having a seizure in front of you. As I saw different stories on youtube about people with this disorder it made me more aware of how I should act if someone were to have a seizure in front of me. Would you know what to do? Well let me tell you. According to Dr. Karen Parko, M.D from San Francisco Veterans Administration Medical Center, you help them get on the ground to protect them from injuring their head due to a fall. If the person is not wearing a tag that identifies them as a person with epilepsy dial 911. Whenever in doubt dial 911 to have the person checked by a medical professional. Currently there is no cure for epilepsy. However there is medication or special diets that one can follow to reduce the seizures. In some cases people have had surgery on the brain to remove the area that is suspected to be causing the seizures.I have included an informative video on epilepsy. If you would like more information on this topic click here.
Understanding Epilepsy Video
My blog post is about epilepsy as well! I also go into severing the corpus callosum and the split-brain phenomenon in patients. Check out my blog! Your post was very informative and especially helpful in revealing what to do in the event that someone is having a seizure. Your video was also reinforcing in fully understanding epilepsy. I like how it compared the brain to an electro-chemical machine, neurons to complex electrical batteries, and seizures are compared to electrical storms.
ReplyDeleteIt must be difficult to have to live with epilepsy especially not knowing when seizures will occur. I had no idea that AIDS was also a cause of epilepsy. The information regarding what to do when encountering a person with epilepsy is very helpful, because in many cases one will have no idea on what to do. Hopefully as research advances a cure for epilepsy is found.
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