Seizures: Causes, Symptoms and Treatment Options as well as Disease Prevention
🩺 Symptoms
A seizure is a sudden, temporary loss of consciousness and control of motor function. Seizures may be mild to severe, partial or generalized, frequent or infrequent; and may involve twitching or convulsing. The patient may appear disoriented and unable to stand.
When a seizure occurs, the patient may vocalize, lose consciousness, or stiffen the body. Fortunately, many patients will recover from a seizure and slowly regain their ability to control their movements.
Generalized seizures are more severe. The patient loses consciousness, vocalizes and moves the arms and legs uncontrollably. Partial seizures are characterized by a continuous twitching of an arm or a leg.
⚠️ Possible Causes
☠️ Toxicities
- • Heavy Metal Poisoning (often lead or zinc poisoning)
- • Tobacco
- • Exposure to pesticides can lead to nonspecific signs of poisoning, including gastrointestinal problems, tremors, weakness, dyspnea, seizures or sudden death.
🍎 Nutrition / Malnutrition
- • Dehydration - once the patient is properly hydrated, the seizures usually stop. If not corrected, dehydration will lead to death. Note: the cause of the dehydration needs to be found, unless it obvious (lack of water).
- • Low blood sugar. Possible symptoms: Increase in thirst and urination; weakness, collapse, seizures.
🧠 Neurological
- • Trauma / Accident / Brain Damage
- • Brain tumor
- • Infectious diseases with neurological symptoms
🔬 Metabolic
- • End-stage liver disease
- • Hyperthermia / Heat exposure
- • Metabolic diseases (hypocalcaemia, hyperglycemia)
- • Problems with the uropygial gland
💊 Treatment
⚡ Emergency Care: The patient should be taken to the doctor immediately. They may provide supportive care, including a warm, quiet, safe environment, fluids, nutritional support, antibiotics (whenever appropriate) and anticonvulsants.
🔬 Diagnostic Testing: Blood tests will be taken to try to determine the cause of the seizure. A baseline complete blood count and chemistry (CBC) will reveal whether anemia, inflammation or infection is present.
Specific Treatments:
- Heavy Metal Poisoning: Chelating drugs and removal of lead or zinc particles
- Hypocalcaemia: Calcium and vitamin D3 supplementation
- Hypoglycemia: Glucose/dextrose administration
- Liver Disease: Targeted liver treatment if present
If the cause of the seizures can be found, treatment is generally directed specifically towards correcting the underlying problem.