Epilepsy

What is Epilepsy

Chasity Dailey Intro. to Special Education Professor Lara A.A.C.C Fall 2013

Epilepsy is a neurological condition, which affects the nervous system. Epilepsy is also known as a seizure disorder. It is usually diagnosed after a person has had at least two seizures that were not caused by some known medical condition like alcohol withdrawal or extremely low blood sugar. Sometimes, according to the International League Against Epilepsy, epilepsy can be diagnosed after one seizure, if a person has a Caption describing condition that places them at high picture or graphic. risk for having another.

Statistics
45,000 children under the age of 15 develop epilepsy each year. Approximately 200,000 new cases of seizures and epilepsy occur each year. Incidence is highest under the age of 2 and over 65. Epilepsy and seizures affect nearly 3 million Americans of all ages Incidence is greater in African American and socially disadvantaged populations Males are slightly more likely to develop epilepsy than females 50 percent of people with new cases of epilepsy will have generalized onset seizures. Generalized seizures

Symptoms
Short attention blackouts, dazed behavior, memory gaps, mumbling or no response Sudden falls, frequent stumbling or unusual clumsiness Repeated, unusual movements such as head nodding or rapid blinking Sudden stomach pain followed by confusion and sleepiness Unusual sleepiness and irritability when woken up Frequent complaints that things look, sound, taste, and smell or feel "funny" Sudden, repeated fear or anger Clusters of (repeated) "jackknife" movements by babies who are sitting down Clusters of grabbing movements with both arms in babies lying on their backs Note: It's important to remember that many of these signs are normal childhood behavior. However, if they happen often and seem unusual, it's worth mentioning to a doctor.

Current Laws

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) - All children shall receive a free and appropriate public education. The Americans with Disabilities Act was enacted to prohibit disability-based discrimination. Many provisions of the ADA have particular impact on people with epilepsy, including inclusion for safetysensitive jobs and reasonable accommodation.

Treatments

Current Medical Research: New Antiepilepsy Drug Trokendi XR, receives Final FDA Approval A newly-released report from Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) has revealed that nearly 450 new medicines are in development to treat neurological disorders, including 28 for epilepsy and seizures.

Antiepileptic drugs Surgery Diet therapy (ketogenic diet) Complementary therapy Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) EEG (electroencephalogram) test

chcs

Approximately 9 percent of children with epilepsy have IQ's below 70, a percentage that is three times greater than in the general population. Many of them are found to be significantly behind their peers in academic achievement levels, ranging from 16 percent below grade in reading to 50 percent in general knowledge.

Causes
The causes of epilepsy can be divided into two groups: brain injuries and chemical imbalances in the brain. Anything that injures the brain can lead to seizures. But in over half the cases no cause can be identified. Common chemical imbalances that can produce seizures include drugs like alcohol, cocaine and others, low blood sugar, low oxygen, low blood sodium or low blood calcium. Kidney failure or liver failure can also produce seizures unknown. About half the time no cause for seizure can be identified. Genetics or heredity is most relevant to generalized seizures, including absence, generalized tonic-clonic and myoclonic seizures Defects in genes don't directly lead to epilepsy, but they can alter the excitability of brain in a way to predispose to the seizures

Epilepsy develops

Understanding epilepsy in the school system

Teacher attitude is an important factor in a child's social adjustment at school; programs for the school community form an important part of most Epilepsy Foundation programs in local areas. Such programs generally focus on teacher awareness of seizure symptoms, seizure management and full integration of the child within the community. School nurses also play an important role in the management of the child with epilepsy at school, especially in dispensing of antiepileptic medication during the school day, and in educating the rest of the school community about epilepsy.

Although these disorders

and injuries can explain many cases of epilepsy, often the cause of epilepsy remains idiopathic meaning

because of multiple gene abnormalities or because of a gene abnormality in concert with an environmental trigger.

Seizures are generally described in two major groups of seizures:

Primary generalized seizures: Absence seizures Atypical absence seizures Myoclonic seizures Atonic seizures Tonic seizures Clonic seizures Tonic-clonic seizures Partial Seizures: Simple partial seizures Complex partial seizures Secondarily generalized seizures

Family Resources:
Epilepsy Foundation 8301 Professional Place Landover, MD 20785-2353 Telephone: 1-800-332-1000 www.epilepsyfoundation.org Abilities Network 8503 LaSalle Road. Towson, Maryland, 21286 Main 410.828.7700 www.abilitiesnetwork.org

Epilepsy Foundation (1996-2011).Retrieved from: http://www.epilepsyfoundation.org/aboutepilep sy/whatisepilepsy/statistics.cfm Epilepsy.com (2013).Retrieved from: Kennedy Krieger Institute/ Neurology and Neurogenetics Clinic https://www.epilepsy.com/epilepsy/types_seizur 801 N. Broadway, Baltimore, Md. 21205 es Case Management Office 888-544-2080/443-923-9400 Caption describing picture or graphic. NYU Medical Langone Medical Center www.kennedykrieger.org (2011).Retrieved from: http://epilepsy.med.nyu.edu/treatment Standford Epilepsy Center (2013). Received from: http://neurology.stanford.edu/epilepsy/patientc are/videos/e_05.html

References:

Friends Name Street Address City, State Zip Code

Page 2

Christmas 2004 Volume 1, Issue 1 Your Familys Name (242) 555-0193