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Couple of more questions please?
Tue, 05/02/2006 - 20:31Topic: New to Epilepsy.com
I saw an epileptologist today and he confused me more than my neuro. My neuro said I definately had ep but I wanted a second opinion. The epi was arrogant and just fired a thousand questions at me and I felt like I was on trial. The bottom line was he (the epi) said he didn't know if I had ep cause I said that I felt that I had a couple of absent seizures but I also reported several twitches and muscle jerks that would march up my body. He said it was not possible to have both partial and generalized seiaures so he didn't know whether I was having either one of them. He also said that my seizures vary too much and that every seizure should be the same as the last. Everything I described to him was a symptom of a seizure, they just corssed over according to him. WELL. THEY ARE HAPPENNING TO ME!!! He scheduled me for video EEG for sometime later this year, upped my meds to the max, told me not to drive till the tests proved I didn't have ep, what a jerk!!!
Questions:
1. I've read in several places that a partial can turn into a generalized. True? Isn't this an ongoing philisophical battle between neuros?
2. Are all your seizures, aura's, etc.. always the same?
Thanks to anyone that takes the time to read this and that also has any input.
Comments
Re: Re: Couple of more questions please?
Submitted by aquila316 on Wed, 2006-05-03 - 08:45
Ok, first of all, it doesn't make it easier to understand when the doctors (or whomever) keep changing the names! I was diagnosed w/ petit mal as a child by an excellent ped. neurologist. In adulthood, much like Sol's, my auras gor VERY different, lasted a great deal longer, and had different symptoms. That of course means more tests. My Dr. then said I had Absence seizures, which were the actual auras, simple partial seizures (usually the day after one filled with temporal lobes----my "morning after") and complex partial which were the temporal lobes. Oh, yeah, I still get grand mals, so that didn't change. All my meds were changed, of course, and still get them to this day. Again, just like Sol, I am having more complex than simple, and the T-lobe seizures are still evolving (and I'm 33, so you can guess what reason my Gyn. gave for the recent changes).
Anyway, I hope that helps some more, (don't worry, I don't drive--lol)
Susan
Re: Couple of more questions please?
Submitted by missy_b on Wed, 2006-05-03 - 13:38
You need a epiletologist who knows what he/she is talking about. A partial seizure can progress into a grand mal seizure.It has happened to me several times. I recently had a video EEG done which confirmed without a doubt that I have partial epilepsy in the right temporal lobe. If you are on a medication or medications that don't control a partial seizure they can progress into a more severe one and can progress into status epileptis. A simple partial can last from a few seconds and progress into a complex partial and then continue to spread. My epiletologist explained it to me as its like a fire cracker. Think of your brain as a bunch of fire crackers. If one "goes off" it can stop there but if it starts another it begins to progress(spreads to the others) until eventually they all go off simultaneously which would be a tonic clonic seizure. If the "fire" doesn't stop it can be very dangerous. See a new Dr. Good luck!
Re: Couple of more questions please?
Submitted by solis on Tue, 2006-05-02 - 22:33
"He said it was not possible to have both partial and generalized seiaures so he didn't know whether I was having either one of them." I've had this for decades (during which time I've read) and I can assure you it IS definitely possible for simple partials (auras are simple partils) to evolve into complex partials or generalized seizures. epilepsy.com confirms this conclusion. "Are all your seizures, aura's, etc.. always the same?" NO! Seizures may change with age, or in response to meds, but they evolve... Example: Initially, my complex partials were always begun with a simple partial (aura) when I was a child. That stopped as I hit adulthood. Then I would either have simple partials alone or complex partials. As the years went on (and meds changed) I had less simple partials..most were complex. After being completely controlled (for 10 years) I had a couple of the weirdest (exceptionally brief) moments (I didn't know where I was in my own home!) Unaware that this was a seizure (any partial I'd ever had in my life before I always knew exactly where I was) I kept driving. (Dumb move on my part, as I had a 'nice' accident) hope that helps ~sol