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absence seizures memory

Thu, 11/13/2008 - 13:35
My daughter is 11 and was diagnosed a year ago with absence seizures.  For the past maybe 6 months I have noticed her memory is terrible.  She will know her math facts and then all of a sudden something switches and she no longer remembers them.  I have watched her switch and actuallly saw her face change. It was really weird.  She also gets tongue tied easily and if she reads out loud very long its like her tongue kind of gives out on her (it's the only way I can explain it).  Do any of you have these issues?  She works her butt off in school but is really struggling.  Her teachers are finally starting to see the memory thing but arent sure what steps to take next.  She is already on an IEP and is in special ed for math.  She is very bright,witty and outgoing but will not draw any attention to herself for fear she will have a seizure with everyone looking at her.  She is only having 3-4 seizures a day now which  seems liveable to us.  If you know of any special tricks or therapies to help with her memoty please let me know.     thanks    sally

Comments

Re: absence seizures memory

Submitted by JT on Tue, 2009-12-01 - 20:51

Hi.  I am new to this so please bear with me!  

 My 13 year old son has recently been diagnosed with absence seizures .  We believe he has been having them for years but they were so short that they just seemed like he was "spacing out" as he calls it.   He has had a sleep deprived EEG which showed 1 seizure.  His MRI was normal.  He then had a 24 hr. Digi-trace EEG.   He showed 13 episodes, 2 of which were approximately 20-30 seconds.  The seizures never seem to occur when he is active, riding his bike, shooting baskets, outside playing, etc.   He is a straight A student and never has trouble in school.  He is rather shy and sometimes has difficulty getting along with and making friends.  He is not athletic and the one thing he takes pride in his is scholastic achievement.  He has a twin sister who dances and  plays sports and I think that this has always made him try harder at school.  We are deciding on meds and after reading up on them we are very concerned that they will interfere with his quality of life and really damage his already low self esteem.  His Neuro also can't decide if meds are the right thing for him at this point in his life as he feels there may be some evidence that he is outgrowing the seizures.  He has already recommended that we talk to the epilepsy specialist at a larger hospital in Boston.

We have already decided if it is a safety issue then it will have to be the meds.   His neuro would like to start him on Zarontin.  Anyone out there who has experience with this med please help!  Does it take long to see the benefits?  If there are side effects how long do they last?  Has anyone had a long stretch of absence seizures and then a grand mal?  I realize this will be different for each individual child but I am just looking for general answers.     

Hi.  I am new to this so please bear with me!  

 My 13 year old son has recently been diagnosed with absence seizures .  We believe he has been having them for years but they were so short that they just seemed like he was "spacing out" as he calls it.   He has had a sleep deprived EEG which showed 1 seizure.  His MRI was normal.  He then had a 24 hr. Digi-trace EEG.   He showed 13 episodes, 2 of which were approximately 20-30 seconds.  The seizures never seem to occur when he is active, riding his bike, shooting baskets, outside playing, etc.   He is a straight A student and never has trouble in school.  He is rather shy and sometimes has difficulty getting along with and making friends.  He is not athletic and the one thing he takes pride in his is scholastic achievement.  He has a twin sister who dances and  plays sports and I think that this has always made him try harder at school.  We are deciding on meds and after reading up on them we are very concerned that they will interfere with his quality of life and really damage his already low self esteem.  His Neuro also can't decide if meds are the right thing for him at this point in his life as he feels there may be some evidence that he is outgrowing the seizures.  He has already recommended that we talk to the epilepsy specialist at a larger hospital in Boston.

We have already decided if it is a safety issue then it will have to be the meds.   His neuro would like to start him on Zarontin.  Anyone out there who has experience with this med please help!  Does it take long to see the benefits?  If there are side effects how long do they last?  Has anyone had a long stretch of absence seizures and then a grand mal?  I realize this will be different for each individual child but I am just looking for general answers.     

Re: absence seizures memory

Submitted by nyjetsnc on Mon, 2009-12-07 - 18:57
my son was diagnosed a little over a year ago @ age 7 with absence seizures. his dr. put him on Ethosuximide 250mg he takes it twice a day (morning and night) he had 2 minor side effects when he started hiccups and a stomach ache both lasting a few hours (stomach was better with food). we are very pleased with the results and have not noticed any zoning since he started meds. (we have missed a night and morning and did see him zone). my son is very athletic (contact sports football, lacrosse) and the meds have not stopped him, if anything we feel he is safer because he is not zoning out. the meds kicked in within the first couple days. no grand mal here my son and daughter have both had febrile seizures. he also continues to do well in school, better on reading comp. since he is not zoning and losing his place. i was also very worried about starting the meds but for us it was a safety and educational need. good luck to you and your family hope our story helps you

Re: absence seizures memory

Submitted by pgd on Thu, 2010-01-07 - 09:33

Regarding short term memory, the very old medicine caffeine may temporarily help a few persons (not everyone) a little (not a cure).  For some, caffeine works a little;  for others caffeine may appear to be neutral;  and for still others, caffeine may lower the seizure threshold/change how a med for epilepsy works.  RSNA.org:  Coffee Jump-starts Short-term Memory - http://www.rsna.org/rsna/media/pr2005/Coffee.cfm - Best wishes.

                         

Regarding short term memory, the very old medicine caffeine may temporarily help a few persons (not everyone) a little (not a cure).  For some, caffeine works a little;  for others caffeine may appear to be neutral;  and for still others, caffeine may lower the seizure threshold/change how a med for epilepsy works.  RSNA.org:  Coffee Jump-starts Short-term Memory - http://www.rsna.org/rsna/media/pr2005/Coffee.cfm - Best wishes.

                         

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