Basic mechanisms
Timothy Betts, Lyn Greenhill in Managing Epilepsy with Women in Mind, 2005
Definitions An epileptic seizure is a sudden, paroxysmal, repetitive and synchronous discharge of cerebral neurones, different from ordinary activity but not necessarily abnormal: although without any positive or beneficial effects in humans and with several obvious negative ones, epilepsy in some specialized animal populations does have survival value and is genetically maintained at an appropriate level within them; epileptic activity in small mammals may be expressed not as falling over and convulsing but as running behaviour which may help the animal to escape from a predator, as the running is in a blind, unpredictable direction.
Epilepsy
Anita Sharma, Shauna Dixon, Tanya Claridge in Maximising Quality and Outcomes Framework Quality Points, 2017
Epilepsy is the most common chronic, disabling neurological condition in the United Kingdom. The incidence of epilepsy is high in older people. It is believed that epilepsy can be managed by a structured, goal-orientated regime in the primary care sector as there are better-defined indicators for secondary care referrals as per National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidelines. Epilepsy has the potential for stigmatisation and psychological consequences. The primary care physician is responsible for the care of adults with epilepsy. Depression and anxiety are more common in people with epilepsy. Every year approximately 1000 people in England die of epilepsy-related causes, of which 400 deaths are avoidable. There is an increased risk of seizures in the children of parents with epilepsy, but the probability that a child will be affected is very low. While updating epilepsy indicators some other data can be collected which could help you maximise the Quality and Outcomes Framework.
Epilepsy and Neurosis
Ashoka Jahnavi Prasad in Biological Basis and Therapy of Neuroses, 2018
This chapter considers the extent to which the evidence supports the more speculative hypothesis that the specific pathological processes underlying epileptic seizures are closely related to the pathological processes that generate psychiatric symptoms. Electroencephalographic records of paroxysmal fluctuations in electrical potential between electrodes attached to the scalp during a seizure justify the pathophysiological description of an epileptic seizure as an abnormal electrical discharge of neurons which spreads through the brain. The neurophysiological processes associated with sleep are closely related to the manifestation of paroxysmal electrical activity and to disturbances of affect. The epidemiological studies reviewed demonstrate that between a quarter and a half of those with epilepsy have substantial psychiatric disorder. Depression, anxiety, and suicide are all more common in epileptic patients than in the general population. Sexual dysfunction, especially hyposexuality, is more common in those with temporal lobe epilepsy than in the general population.
Pathogenesis of epileptic seizures and epilepsy after stroke
Published in Neurological Research, 2018
Huajun Yang, Gary Rajah, Anchen Guo, Yongjun Wang, Qun Wang
Stroke is an important cause of seizures and epilepsy in adults, particularly among the elderly. The incidence of stroke increases yearly as life expectancy increases and the number of patients with post-stroke seizures and epilepsy is also rising. Post-stroke epilepsy accounts for nearly 50% of newly diagnosed epilepsy among patients over 60 years of age. With increasing stroke awareness and advanced treatments, increased attention is paid to post-stroke seizures and epilepsy including its diagnosis and treatment. There has been a plethora of research on the pathogenesis of seizures and epilepsy after stroke. And thus, the research advances in the pathogenesis and related therapeutic targets of post-stroke seizures and epilepsy will be reviewed in this article.
Epilepsy and challenging behaviour in adults with intellectual disability: A systematic review
Published in Journal of Intellectual & Developmental Disability, 2019
Jessica Blickwedel, Afia Ali, Angela Hassiotis
Background: Epilepsy and challenging behaviour are both highly prevalent in the intellectual disability (ID) population and it is thus crucial to understand any possible associations between the two. Method: PsycINFO, MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL and Web of Science were searched for quantitative data about epilepsy and any forms of challenging behaviour in adults with ID. Results: A total of 25 articles were included in the review. Overall the evidence suggests that while epilepsy is not a good explanatory variable for the presence of challenging behaviour; the relationship is complex. However, for some people with epilepsy and for certain types of challenging behaviour a link may exist. Conclusions: Given the possible link between epilepsy-related factors such as seizure type and specific subgroups of challenging behaviour, investigating these relationships further and particularly exploring how to best measure challenging behaviour in people with epilepsy could be of great clinical benefit.
The c-Jun N-terminal kinase signaling pathway in epilepsy: activation, regulation, and therapeutics
Published in Journal of Receptors and Signal Transduction, 2018
Wuqiong Zhang, Xue Wang, Miaomiao Yu, Jia-Ai Li, Hongmei Meng
Epilepsy affects approximately 50–70 million people worldwide and 30–40% of patients do not benefit from medication. Therefore, it is necessary to identify novel targets for epileptic treatments. c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) is a member of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) family that activates diverse substrates, such as transcriptional factors, adaptor proteins, and signaling proteins, and has a wide variety of functions in both physiological and pathological conditions. The excessive activation of JNK is found not only in the acute phase of epilepsy, but also in the chronic phase, which potentiates it as a promising target in epilepsy control. In this review, we discuss the activation of the JNK pathway in epilepsy and its role in neuronal death, astrocyte activation, and mossy fiber sprouting (MFS) based on recent updates. Finally, we briefly introduce the current agents that target JNK signaling to control epilepsy.