What is the epileptic syndrome, its causes, symptoms and treatment

Epileptic syndrome is a condition in which the convulsive state that usually occurs during epileptic seizures is often repeated.

The convulsive attack( the main symptom of the syndrome) usually begins suddenly, although the body warns of its onset with some symptoms: a strong or moderate headache may occur a day or two before the seizure, an appetite is disturbed, sleep becomes restless, the person is excessively irritable and complains aboutbad feeling. In some cases, the attack begins with the patient's aura.

In medical practice, the auras are divided into:

• motor : in this case, the attack in the patient begins with the patient freezes in some position or somewhere starts to run;
• sensory : sensory disorders( visual, taste, olfactory);
• vegetative : uncomfortable sensations in the heart, heat or cold in the head, urge to urinate, strengthened peristalsis;
• sensitive : paresthesia of different parts of the body is observed;
• vestibular ;
• psychic : unreasonable sense of fear, joy, euphoria.

The duration of the aura can last only a few seconds, after which a person loses consciousness, issuing a kind of cry that has become a consequence of spasm of the vocal cords. The next quarter of an hour, tonic convulsions occur. At this time, the patient's breathing is delayed, his face becomes cyanotic-pale, the veins in the neck region swell, cyanosis increases.

The next 3 minutes continue clonic convulsions, during which there is a hoarse, noisy breathing. There is a variant of tongue sinking.

Cyanosis slowly recedes, saliva is secreted in the form of a foam( it can be colored red due to the ingress of blood into the saliva due to biting the tongue or the inside of the cheek).

During a fit, the patient does not react to external stimuli, the dilated pupils do not respond to light, the tendon reflexes do not work. Sometimes a patient can, without getting out of this condition, fall asleep.

The entire seizure lasts about 4 minutes and after it ends the person feels a sense of depression, drowsiness, weakness. About the seizure the patient does not remember anything.

What provokes the episindrom?

Epileptic syndrome can occur for a number of reasons, and if you get rid of them, the convulsive state will not repeat itself.

The impetus for the syndrome can be:

• during pregnancy and childbirth, the hypoxia of the brain in the fetus or all kinds of injuries during the delivery process can cause the epileptic syndrome;
• frequent syncope;
• tumors and other brain damage;
• craniocerebral trauma;
• in patients over 50 years of age the syndrome can develop against the background of degenerative processes, cerebrovascular diseases;
• genetic predisposition;
• disease, for example, collapse, sclerosis of the hippocampus.

Clinical picture - how it happens?

Epileptic syndrome is accompanied by a number of symptoms that are similar in many respects to epileptic seizures, but are easier to bear:

1. Seizure comes unexpectedly.
2. Seizure time can be three to four minutes.
3. After a fit, the patient becomes sluggish, drowsy.
4. For a day or two before the attack, the patient's appetite disappears, sleep worsens, general weakness in the body is observed.
5. During an attack the patient looks at one point, facial muscles begin to twitch, complete loss of consciousness is possible. Immediately after the attack the patient can freely communicate, will be completely adequate, absolutely not remembering the attack.
6. Twilight state is a manifestation of epileptic syndrome, which is characterized by a disorientation in the location, time, possibly the appearance of hallucinations. This state can be kept from several minutes to several hours. After the "return" to the normal state there is complete amnesia.

Epileptic syndrome in newborns

Epileptic syndrome in infants is observed as a result of birth trauma, severe hypoxia, metabolic defects at the genetic level. According to statistics, 5% of all babies experienced convulsions with an increase in body temperature and half of them experienced the situation again.

Seizures are especially dangerous for children, and, the smaller the child's age, the higher his convulsive readiness. The reason for this is the immaturity of certain brain structures, nerve fibers, and also:

• hormonal disorders;
• overheating;
• meningitis, brain injury;
• poisoning;
• spasmophilia;
• congenital disorders.

Syndrome in toddlers can manifest as symptoms of a tonic and clonic type of convulsive contractions:

1. Tonic may be long enough to affect individual muscle groups. The pulse and breathing of the child slow down, contact with the outside world is lost. The legs are stretched, the arms bend in the joints, the head is thrown back.
2. Clonic - rapid contractions( rhythmic and arrhythmic), accompanied by a rapid pulse and breathing, foam appears on the lips. Seizures start from the face and then spread to the skeletal muscles.

Diagnosis of

The following methods are used to diagnose epileptic syndrome:

• MRI ( magnetic field study);
• CT ( X-rays are used, but the result is more accurate than in X-rays);
• electroencephalogram ( helps to fix seizures and the location of their localization).

With the help of these types of examinations, the doctor discovers the affected areas of the brain.

Approach to therapy

Treatment of the syndrome in a child is to find the cause of its occurrence and its elimination. So, if the disease is the result of a lack of potassium, it is necessary to replenish its reserves, at an elevated temperature should give an antipyretic.

If the cause is difficult to determine, a drug is given to relieve the seizures.

Neuropathologist and psychiatrist deal with treatment of epileptic syndrome in adults. To help the psychiatric should be resorted only in cases of serious abnormalities, acute psychosis, with pronounced dementia.

Hospitalization in this situation is necessary, but without the patient's permission, it is unacceptable. Necessarily in this situation, you must follow a diet, eliminating the protein from the diet.

Treatment will be much more effective if you allow the body to rest. It is also useful to play sports, reduce the use of liquid, acute and salty. To relax the muscular system requires the use of tranquilizers.

You can also use medicinal plants in the form of infusion. Violet, wild rosemary, oregano, celandine, mistletoe, hoof, tansy in equal proportions are poured in half a liter of boiling water( the herbs should be in the amount of 2 large spoons total).The drug persists throughout the night and is applied three weeks to 50 grams four times a day.

If strict adherence to the prescribed treatment with epileptic syndrome can lead a full life, with only a small exception: a person can not in any case drive a vehicle, swim in a reservoir or pool unattended, work with automated mechanisms. In all other cases, subject to timely medication, there are no restrictions.

Complications and consequences

A neglected disease can lead to far more serious consequences in the form of recurring seizures, which are becoming more frequent. Exchange processes are also worsening.

The result of such frequent seizures is the epileptic status - convulsive seizures without a temporary clearing, the danger is that they are so frequent that after them a coma follows.

The patient's condition deteriorates sharply, breathing is disrupted, muscle hypertension develops, which changes into atony. After the attack, the mouth opens and the pupils dilate. If you are late with the first medical aid during an attack, the result can be fatal.

After such a seizure, the patient enters the intensive care unit and receives intravenously Tyopental, Diphenin.

In order to avoid manifestations of epileptic syndrome, it is necessary to adhere to such rules:

• active way of life;
• compliance with the regime and full sleep;
• refusal to work at night;
• rejection of alcohol and narcotic drugs.