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Possible symptoms of epilepsy?

Tue, 08/08/2006 - 08:05
Hi, I'm looking for some information please. My daughter who is in her thirties has had some visual problems for a while, she often has a coloured mesh over her vision(both eyes)which is worst when she wakes then gradually fades during the day. She has had her eyes checked and the oculist can find nothing wrong. She has since woken up with a 'bad smell' on 2 occasions accompanied by the visual disturbance, which has gone after a few minutes. A couple of weeks ago she was in a conversation in which the name of a nearby town she knows well and passes through every day was mentioned. She had no idea of where we were talking about despite prompts and took a few hours before she could recall it. She also feels she is sometimes struggling to complete sentences although she sounds perfectly normal. This week she has had an MRI scan which was normal and showd no sign of any AVM or other abnormality and is waiting to see a neurologist, hopefully this week. Can anyone tell me if these are symptoms of any form of epilepsy and if so which? She has no loss of conciousness or any other outward symptoms. I'd be grateful for any input so I can help her if possible.

Comments

Re: Possible symptoms of epilepsy?

Submitted by kimbecki on Tue, 2006-08-08 - 09:34
not a doctor but can tell you that those symptoms seem like they could be consistent with epilepsy, which doesn't really mean anything except unexplained electrical activity in the brain--what will likely be more telling is an EEG, which the neurologist will likely have done. Siezures can manifest themselves in many ways--many years ago I had flashing lights in one eye and my pinky finger jumped around for no reason--both of these things were seizures, but they are nothing like the grand mal siezures my husband has. The "bad smell" could be an aura and the vision issue a seizure. Siezures can affect memory, too. But the neurologist will be able to do more tests and tell you more--if it is a kind of seizure, there are tons of anti-seizure medications that could help. One thing I can tell you--we know very little about the brain and you may never get an explanation, which can be frustrating.

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