Seizure

Epilepsy is a chronic neurological disorder characterized by abnormal electrical activity in the brain, resulting in unprovoked, recurring, epileptic seizures [1]. Epilepsy is estimated to affect about 470,000 children in the U.S. [2]. In the majority of cases, alternative treatment options to antiseizure medications, such as dietary therapy, are not considered until a patient is defined as having persistent seizures despite adequately trialing at least two antiseizure medications that were tolerated and appropriately chosen.

Epilepsy is a common neurological disease requiring long-term therapy. Choice of antiseizure medication (ASM) is not always easy and requires clinical experience considering individual characteristics including age and sex. Pregnancy is a particular challenge as potential fetal side effects of ASM treatment must be taken into account.

Mitochondrial encephalomyopathy is a complex group of inherited disease with multisystem involvement that have mitochondrial respiratory chain dysfunction. Mitochondrial encephalomyopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes (MELAS) is one of the most common well-defined mitochondrial encephalomyopathies, with a frequency of 1:6000 [1,2]. Although the most common mutation in MELAS is in the MT-TL1 gene encoding tRNALeu(UUR), known as adenine to guanine transition at nucleotide 3243 (m.3243A>G) [3,4], multiple other mutations in MELAS have been reported in mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and nuclear ...

Epilepsy affects approximately 50 million people worldwide [1]. Despite many years of research and a large number of antiseizure medication that inhibit neurotransmission and excessive stimulation of neurones, approximately 30% of patients fail to achieve seizure freedom [2]. Regardless of the aetiology of epilepsy, additional processes such as inflammation and related damage to the blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity may affect the course of the disease and the response to treatment [3]. Clinical observations have demonstrated that adrenocortical hormones (ACTH) and ...

Dissociative seizures (DS) can be understood as an involuntary behavioral and sensory response to internal and external triggers that includes alterations in consciousness [1,2].

Hemimegalencephaly (HME) is a congenital malformation of cortical development (MCD) commonly associated with early-onset refractory epilepsy. Early functional hemispherotomy is offered to eligible patients with the goal to provide seizure control and improve neurologic outcomes [1]. Mutations in the GATOR1 protein complex, including the nitrogen permease regulator 3-like protein (NPRL3) gene, cause hyperactivation of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway, and represent a potential therapeutic target (e.g., mTOR inhibitors) for HME-related epilepsy [2].

Idiopathic generalized epilepsies (IGEs) are a common group of genetic generalized epilepsies, which account for 15% to 20% of all epilepsies [14]. It is characterized by generalized epileptic seizures, including absence, myoclonic, generalized tonic-clonic, and myoclonic-tonic-clonic seizures, generalized spike/polyspike-slow waves on EEG, and good prognosis with normal neurodevelopment. Generally, the IGEs comprise four syndromes, including childhood absence epilepsy (CAE), juvenile absence epilepsy (JAE), juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME), and epilepsy with generalized tonic-clonic seizures alone (GTCA) [12].

Epilepsy is one of the most common chronic neurological disorders, with a prevalence of at least 7 to 9 per 1,000 people and an incidence of 67 per 100,000 people per year worldwide [1–3]. The global prevalence of epilepsy is highly variable in different regions of the world, implying that biological, environmental, and health resource-related factors contribute to this observation [4]. In addition, epilepsy is often associated with many somatic and psychiatric comorbidities, further impairing quality of life [5].

Epilepsy is a very common health condition defined as a neurological disease and characterized mainly by the recurrence of epileptic seizures [1]. There are 50 million persons with epilepsy (PwE) in the world [2], of these 70% can control seizures using medicines [3]. However, 75% of PwE who live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and more than half who live in Latin America and the Caribbean do not have access to appropriate treatments [3, 4]. Furthermore, epilepsy is responsible ...

Epilepsy with myoclonic absence (EMA), which was originally depicted by Tassinari in 1969 and 1971, is now classified by the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) as a genetic generalised epilepsy syndrome of childhood. EMA is characterised by rhythmic jerks and tonic contractions with impaired consciousness accompanied by synchronous and symmetric 3 Hz spike-and-wave discharges. It is generally bilateral, but it must be differentiated from focal impaired awareness motor seizures when it is unilateral [1].