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Suggest Treatment For Seizure Like Episodes
Question: Hello,
I've been having seizure-like episodes for nearly 10 months. They started as 'zoning out' episodes. I started having what I think are grand mal seizures. I have convulsions and altered consciousness, sometimes I go tense. Sometimes my left arm is convulsing while my right arm is stretched out. This is followed by a period of not being able to move or talk. I go limp and it takes a lot of effort to do anything, I usually fall asleep and don't remember anything about it. These episodes usually come after a zoning out episode or I start jerking a lot and it turns into a bigger seizure. I have jerks throughout the day every day. It is usually on the left side of my body but it can involve both sides. It's usually just my left arm that jerks. It feels like a sudden contraction of my muscles and I can feel my muscles being effected in my torso as well. It feels like an electric shock and it happens without warning. Sometimes it comes in groups.
Sorry this is getting long. Occasionally these jerks come with my head dropping down which really hurts, but this doesn't happen often. If I jerk and my head drops while I'm standing it's really hard to stop myself falling. Most recently, I have been having new episodes. It has only happened twice, but I saw this person slapping my cheek and then I jerked out of it and felt spacey for a while. Then I saw the ceiling getting closer to me and jerked out of it and was feeling really out of it. The last one I had, i sat up in bed and I was conscious but I was not at all alert or responsive of my environment. I was holding my arm to my chest with my hand in a ball. I couldn't move or do anything or look at anything and I was dribbling a lot.
If you can imagine, all of this is really scary for me, especially the last ones I mentioned. I've had an mri which was normal and a sleep deprived eeg which was also normal. One neurologist said I may have been having myoclonic jerks which don't necessarily show on the eeg. He has ordered a full day eeg which I'm still awaiting. Directly after that, a different neurologist came and told me that I'm not having myoclonic jerks and I'm just getting startled and jumping at things in the environment because of being stressed. I told him they happen even when I'm not stressed but he kept on saying the same thing to me.
I'm really confused and wondering whether to go ahead with the next eeg. I don't know what to do to help myself. Any advice would be appreciated.
Thank you
I've been having seizure-like episodes for nearly 10 months. They started as 'zoning out' episodes. I started having what I think are grand mal seizures. I have convulsions and altered consciousness, sometimes I go tense. Sometimes my left arm is convulsing while my right arm is stretched out. This is followed by a period of not being able to move or talk. I go limp and it takes a lot of effort to do anything, I usually fall asleep and don't remember anything about it. These episodes usually come after a zoning out episode or I start jerking a lot and it turns into a bigger seizure. I have jerks throughout the day every day. It is usually on the left side of my body but it can involve both sides. It's usually just my left arm that jerks. It feels like a sudden contraction of my muscles and I can feel my muscles being effected in my torso as well. It feels like an electric shock and it happens without warning. Sometimes it comes in groups.
Sorry this is getting long. Occasionally these jerks come with my head dropping down which really hurts, but this doesn't happen often. If I jerk and my head drops while I'm standing it's really hard to stop myself falling. Most recently, I have been having new episodes. It has only happened twice, but I saw this person slapping my cheek and then I jerked out of it and felt spacey for a while. Then I saw the ceiling getting closer to me and jerked out of it and was feeling really out of it. The last one I had, i sat up in bed and I was conscious but I was not at all alert or responsive of my environment. I was holding my arm to my chest with my hand in a ball. I couldn't move or do anything or look at anything and I was dribbling a lot.
If you can imagine, all of this is really scary for me, especially the last ones I mentioned. I've had an mri which was normal and a sleep deprived eeg which was also normal. One neurologist said I may have been having myoclonic jerks which don't necessarily show on the eeg. He has ordered a full day eeg which I'm still awaiting. Directly after that, a different neurologist came and told me that I'm not having myoclonic jerks and I'm just getting startled and jumping at things in the environment because of being stressed. I told him they happen even when I'm not stressed but he kept on saying the same thing to me.
I'm really confused and wondering whether to go ahead with the next eeg. I don't know what to do to help myself. Any advice would be appreciated.
Thank you
Brief Answer:
Go for prolonged video eeg
Detailed Answer:
Hello XXXXXXX
I have gone through your question and understand your concerns.
Your description seems to be complex partial seizure with secondary generalisation and other type is of absence seizure.
I am not sure about myoclonic jerks by your description.
Myoclonic jerks are brief sudden contraction of muscle and relaxation. It usually occurs in morning leading to throwing of hand held objects and fall.
Sometimes routine Mri and eeg doesn't pick any abnormalities.
I will advise you to go for prolonged eeg preferably video eeg and Mri brain epilepsy protocol to look for medial temporal lobe sclerosis.
One possibility of Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy include generalised tonic clonic seizure, absence seizure and myoclonic jerks with onset in adolescence and normal Mri findings.
Hope you found the answer helpful.
Do get back to me for further queries.
Regards
Dr Neeraj Kumar
Neurologist
Go for prolonged video eeg
Detailed Answer:
Hello XXXXXXX
I have gone through your question and understand your concerns.
Your description seems to be complex partial seizure with secondary generalisation and other type is of absence seizure.
I am not sure about myoclonic jerks by your description.
Myoclonic jerks are brief sudden contraction of muscle and relaxation. It usually occurs in morning leading to throwing of hand held objects and fall.
Sometimes routine Mri and eeg doesn't pick any abnormalities.
I will advise you to go for prolonged eeg preferably video eeg and Mri brain epilepsy protocol to look for medial temporal lobe sclerosis.
One possibility of Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy include generalised tonic clonic seizure, absence seizure and myoclonic jerks with onset in adolescence and normal Mri findings.
Hope you found the answer helpful.
Do get back to me for further queries.
Regards
Dr Neeraj Kumar
Neurologist
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Prasad
Answered by
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