Argumentative Essay On Epilepsy

Before a film with flashing lights, it is common to see a warning along the lines of “WARNING. THIS VIDEO HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED BY EPILEPSY ACTION TO POTENTIALLY TRIGGER SEIZURES IN PEOPLE WITH PHOTOSENSITIVE EPILEPSY. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.” These helpful warnings are often used to prevent epileptic seizures in viewers. This relatively common neurological disorder affects around 125,000 Americans, and can be detrimental. To understand epilepsy, one must know what it is, the symptoms, causes, and treatments to the disorder. Epilepsy is defined as a neurological disorder that causes abnormal locomotion or behavior and seizing due to abnormal electric activity in the brain. A common misconception is that all seizures are epileptic.

Photosensitive epilepsy is caused by flashing lights, bold contrast, or overexposure to screen time. This is the most commonly known type by the general population. Refractory epilepsy is caused ineffective medicine. This type of epilepsy means that the medicine prescribed to someone who is epileptic is not helping. Lennox-Gastaut epilepsy is an extremely rare and quite serious form of epilepsy. It is extremely difficult to treat and begins between the ages of two and six. Benign rolandic epilepsy is a strange and short lasting form of epilepsy. It often involves only the face, and is common to disappear before puberty. Abdominal epilepsy is extremely rare. So rare that some do not believe it actually exists, but still, this form of epilepsy is defined seizures that result in nausea or abdominal pain. Extreme electrical activity in the brain can cause absence seizures. They tend to be rather brief. Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy is shown by frequent, general muscle twitches in youths. Lastly, temporal lobe seizures can temporary alterations to sensation and movement, and can even cause someone’s salivary glands to

This is true, but the most common form of diagnosis is tracking the patient for what kind of seizures they have. This way, the doctor can properly treat a specific form of epilepsy. EEG tests are also done to measure the brain's electrical signs, and PET scans can help to pinpoint where in the brain the epilepsy is coming from.

Treatment is often found in medicine. The right medication for the right form of epilepsy has shows to handle seizures in about 70% of people affected by epilepsy. For those who medicine does not affect, surgery in the brain may be used. Often, small portions of the brain are removed or transected to remove abnormal portions of the brain.

Though medicine is often used as a form of treatment, the best way to control epilepsy is by proper management. Avoiding triggers is the best form of management. If a photosensitive epileptic avoids their triggers of flashing lights, and bold contrast, they are much less likely to be induced into an epileptic seizure. Proper emergency equipment is often required as seizures may happen at any time, and it is always best to be ready. Similarly, it is pertinent to understand what to do when someone begins seizing. It is important to leave them to seize, clear the area of anything that may to damage to the person while they are seizing, and time the seizure. Abnormally long or vigorous episodes should be told to a doctor. After