A seizure is a sudden surge of electrical activity in the brain that usually affects how a person feels or acts for a short time. Seizures are not a disease in themselves. Instead, they are a symptom of many different disorders that can affect the brain. Some seizures can hardly be noticed. Others are totally disabling.

A person with epilepsy has had at least two seizures that were not caused by some known medical condition like alcohol withdrawal or extremely low blood sugar. The seizures in epilepsy may be related to a brain injury or a family tendency, but often the cause is completely unknown. The word "epilepsy" does not indicate anything about the cause of the person's seizures or how severe they are.

Topic editor: Gregory L. Holmes, MD, 10/24/06, epilepsy.com Editorial Board.

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