Epilepsy is a chronic neurologic disease that results in convulsive sudden seizures( seizures).
- symptomatic( acquired) epilepsy;
- idiopathic( genuine) epilepsy( hereditary disease);
- cryptogenic epilepsy( gene mutation).
Symptomatic epilepsy can be characterized as a specific brain defect, confirmed by a special study( electroencephalographic monitoring, magnetic resonance imaging).
Symptomatic epilepsy may be caused by:
- congenital malformations of brain tissue;
- stroke;
- mechanical head injuries;
- narcotic and alcohol dependence;
- is a brain tumor.
This type of disease can occur at any age.
Symptomatic epilepsy is difficult to treat, but if the underlying cause of the disease is eliminated, complete recovery is possible.
It is clear that this type of epilepsy, due to the acquired causes of the disease, can not be inherited.
Cryptogenic epilepsy also can not be a hereditary disease, as it is caused by mutation of the original, parental gene set.
Idiopathic( genuine) epilepsy of does not allow to identify the main cause of the disease, since any organic brain damage is absent.
It is this type of epilepsy that can be inherited. 
However, there is no unambiguous mechanism for its transmission.
Idiopathic epilepsy is conditionally divided into two parts:
- inheritance of epilepsy according to the basic, dominant trait( Rolandic epilepsy);
- inheritance of epilepsy on a recessive( suppressed) symptom( juvenile-myoclonic epilepsy).
Hereditary epilepsy is extremely difficult to diagnose, and therefore its detection is available only to an experienced geneticist.
Thus, the answer to the question: is epilepsy inherited?- there will be an unambiguous positive statement - Yes, it is transmitted, but not always and not any.
There are a lot of controversial points.
For example, why one patient who has suffered an epileptic seizure does not have recurrence of seizures, and the other - on the contrary, repeated seizures occur quite often.
Perhaps it is this that is a reasonable explanation of how epilepsy is inherited.
Epilepsy can not be predicted, even if you are firmly convinced that the genetic code of inheritance exists.
No one knows where, how and when this gene will manifest itself.
Perhaps, soon we will become clear the mysterious question of the transfer of epilepsy by inheritance, and we, finally, will be able to successfully treat this serious, mental illness.
Take care of yourself.
Stay healthy!
