Seizure

In people with epilepsy, depressive disorders are frequent comorbidities, constituting a challenge to complex treatment strategies. Administering antidepressants to such individuals is controversial because multiple studies and case reports indicate pro-convulsant effects for tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) and in some cases for serotonin selective reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) as well.[1] For this reason, TCAs are contraindicated in depressed people with epilepsy while SSRIs are often used in this population even though their possible pro-convulsant effects are variable.[2] We report the case of ...

Psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) are paroxysmal subjective or objective clinical manifestations resembling seizures that do not arise from epileptiform cortical discharges. These are now considered to be ‘experiential and behavioural responses’ to internal or external stimuli [1,2]. An international consensus clinical practice statement issued in 2011 ranked PNES among the top three neuropsychiatric problems, along with anxiety/ depression and psychosis [3]. It is now considered to be a biopsychosocial disorder with multifactorial aetiology [4,5].

Ramadan is the name of a month in the Muslim lunar calendar. Ramadan fasting is a basic principle of Islam that involves fasting from dawn to sunset for one lunar month. During Ramadan, healthy adult Muslims are allowed to eat and drink only between sunset and dawn. Fasting is not obligatory for prepubertal children, menstruating women and individuals with mental illness.

Status epilepticus (SE) is one of the most common life-threatening neurological emergencies in children. The estimated incidence of convulsive SE in children is 10-38/100 000 every year, and mortality is currently between 0% and 7.5% [1–4]. The paediatric Status Epilepticus Research Group (pSERG) in the United States has reported an association between treatment delays and unfavourable short-term outcomes in children with refractory SE [2,4]. Age at onset and duration of SE were independently associated with worse neurocognitive outcomes in a ...

Epilepsy is the most common paediatric neurological disorder, with an average annual rate of 5–7 new cases per 10,000 children [1]. Treatment of epilepsy involves long-term therapy of antiseizure medication, which expose patients to potentially undesirable metabolic bone health adverse effects such as vitamin D deficiency [2]. Vitamin D is an important determinant of growth and body development during childhood and adolescence [3–5]. Paediatric studies have shown that long-term antiseizure medication therapy is associated with vitamin D deficiency resulting in ...

The purpose of this study was to investigate the sensitivity and specificity of a standardized placebo protocol using a moist swab pad application in children and adolescents with psychogenic seizures vs epileptic seizures.

Epilepsy is one of the most common neurologic disorders, affecting 0.5%–1.0% of the general population [1,2]. Approximately 35% of patients with epilepsy have medically refractory epilepsy and epilepsy surgery may be the only curative option [3,4]. Despite adequate trials of antiepileptic drugs, the persistence of seizures in refractory cases accounts for more than 75% of the cost of epilepsy care in the United States [5,6]. Although epilepsy surgery for well-selected candidates with medically refractory epilepsy could achieve seizure freedom in ...

Epilepsy is a common neurological disease that affects approximately 12.5 million women of childbearing age worldwide [1]. Compared with healthy individuals, women with epilepsy (WWE) often have increased risk of pregnancy complications, for example, gestational hypertension, pre ­ eclampsia, post-partum hemorrhage, antepartum hemorrhage, placental abruption premature rupture of membranes, preterm labor, and cesarean section [2–6]. Furthermore, infants of WWE who take antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) are at an additional risk of major congenital malformations (MCMs) [7,8], neurodevelopmental delays [9], and low birth weights ...

Glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD-65) is an enzyme that catalyzes the conversion of glutamate to gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). Along with GAD-67, it is responsible for maintaining the physiological supply of GABA in mammals. It is expressed in various cell types, including neurons and pancreatic cells.

Psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES) are sudden and involuntary episodic events, which cause an alteration in normal functioning and a reduction in self-control; they are associated with motor, sensory, mental or autonomic manifestations [1,2]. Although they are similar to epileptic seizures, they are not caused by epileptogenic activity in the brain. PNES are categorized as functional neurological disorders (FND)/conversion disorders within the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) [3].