The word epilepsy brings to mind visions of people frothing at the mouth and rolling on the ground. However, epilepsy affects each patient in a different way. This can make it hard to recognize at times. In the more serious cases of epilepsy, an epileptic attack can make a patient injure himself or develop other life threatening conditions. In rare cases, epilepsy can even cause death. Thus it becomes imperative to understand how to deal with epilepsy.

Treatment options for epilepsy can be categorized as medication, surgical procedures and dietary changes.

Medication
Medication for epilepsy is prescribed on the basis of the symptoms presented and the type of epilepsy the patient is suffering from. In most cases, seizures can be controlled with a single type of medication, but in others, the doctor may need to prescribe a combination of medicines to control epilepsy. These forms of medication do have side effects and hence any reactions to the medication must be immediately brought to the doctor's notice. The dosage for epilepsy medication may need to be varied with time. An epileptic patient should never discontinue medication on their own.

Surgery
Depending on the type of seizures and the area of the brain affected, a doctor may advise surgery in cases of severe epilepsy. Surgery can help reduce the number of seizures experienced or completely stop them. Surgery to treat epilepsy is of many types. Some of the common procedures are:

1. Surgery to remove tumor of any such conditions that may be triggering the epileptic attacks
2. Surgery to remove a small section of the brain from where a seizure originates. This may also be referred to as a lobectomy.
3. Multiple subpial transaction or a surgery that involves making a series of cuts in the brain to prevent the seizures from spreading to other parts of the brain.
4. Surgery to sever the neural connections between the right and left hemispheres of the brain.
5. Surgery to remove half the brain's cortex or outer layer

Dietary changes
A diet rich in fats and low in carbohydrates can help reduce seizures. This is known as a ketogenic diet and aims at making the body break down fats instead of carbohydrates. It can cause a buildup of uric acid in the body and thus should be practiced only under the guidance of a dietician. In cases where epileptic attacks are triggered by malnutrition and birth defects, taking vitamin supplements can help lower the frequency of seizures.

How to Deal with Severe Epilepsy

Sleep apnea is a potentially dangerous sleep disorder in which you stop and start breathing frequently while you are sleeping. Symptoms of sleep apnea often include loud snoring and fatigue even if you sleep uninterrupted through the night. Obesity and age are the common risk factors of sleep apnea.

The most common type of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea, in which the throat muscles contract and relax while you are asleep. The other type of sleep apnea, called central sleep apnea, usually occurs in people who have been diagnosed with brain tumors, infections or heart failure, or have had a stroke.

Treatment of sleep apnea includes:

CPAP: The Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) device is generally recommended in the treatment of sleep apnea. CPAP is a breathing machine that stops your airways from getting blocked when you are sleeping. The CPAP device is normally the size of a tissue box. It comes with a mask that you put over your mouth and nose. The machine attached to the mask pumps a continuous flow of air that keeps your airways clear as you sleep.
BPAP: The Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure (BPAP) device is used as an alternative to the CPAP device, if you find it hard to adjust to the CPAP. If you have a weak pattern of breathing, the BPAP can be helpful.
ASV: The Adaptive Servo-ventilation (ASV) device is used to treat both central and obstructive sleep apnea.
Treatment for other medical conditions: Sometimes sleep apnea can be caused by underlying health conditions. Problems such as rhinitis (nasal passage inflammation) and hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid gland) can cause sleep apnea. In such cases, your doctor needs to diagnose these conditions first before treating your sleep apnea.
Lifestyle changes: Excessive weight sometimes can cause sleep apnea; so losing excessive weight should be a priority. Also, alcohol and tobacco can contribute to your symptoms, so try avoiding those.
Medication: Usually, doctors do not prescribe any medicine, since sedatives and sleeping pills actually worsen sleep apnea. But, in case of sleep apnea in children, doctors typically suggest intra nasal corticosteroid medicine to treat the symptoms.
Surgery: Surgeries to increase the size of your airway or to remove your adenoids, tonsils or extra tissues in the rear of your throat or your nose can prove helpful.

Sleep Apnea - 7 Ways it Can Be Treated!

When particular nerve cells in the brain don't function properly, it leads to epilepsy, which is a common brain disorder. There are several variants of epilepsy, and the one that you are suffering from would play a major role in the type of seizure you are likely to have. Here are the two most common type of seizures:

Common types of Seizures

Generalized seizures: This type of seizures take place when nerve cells on both sides of the brain start misfiring. They may lead to black out, fall or muscle spasms.
Focal seizures: It starts in a particular area of the brain, and the names of the seizure are based on the affected area of the brain. They may lead to both emotional and physical effects which may affect the way a person feels or sees or hear things that have no real presence. In particular cases, the symptoms of focal seizures are regarded of some other kinds of mental or nervous disorder.
Seizures are not considered an either-or thing since some people tend to have a particular type of seizure which gradually alters its course. It is not always easy to classify certain types of seizures which are called unknown-onset seizures and may lead to both physical and sensory symptoms. Both focal and generalized seizures can be categorized into various groups. The most common are listed below:

Subcategories of focal and generalized seizures

Simple focal seizures: It may change how the senses read the surroundings of a person. It can make a familiar taste or smell appear strange. Some people feel dizzy or visualize flashes of light or make the affected individual feel nauseated or sweaty.
Complex focal seizures: It normally happens when a part of the brain which controls emotion and memory gets affected. The affected person may feel awake even when he has lost consciousness. It can take several minutes for a person to come out of the problem.
Secondary generalized seizures: It starts when a part of the brain spreads to the nerve cells. They may lead to a few physical symptoms including muscle slackness and convulsions.
On the other hand, there are six variants of generalized seizures:

Clinic seizure: The muscles tend to have spasms which make a face, neck, and arms jerk rhythmically. It can last for minutes together.
Tonic-clonic seizure: These are the most notable type of seizures and leads to stiffening of the body, jerking and shaking along with the loss of consciousness. It can last between 1 to 3 minutes, and in case they go for a longer span, it is important to seek immediate medical attention. It may lead to breathing issues and may cause the person to bite his tongue or cheek.
Tonic seizures: When the muscled in the legs or arms or trunk tense up for more than 20 seconds, it is called a tonic seizure. If the affected person is in standing position, he or she may end up falling.
Other types of generalized seizure include atonic seizure, absence seizure and myoclonic seizure which are commonly seen in people who have epilepsy.

Seizures - Know The Common Types!

Parkinson s disease is a disorder involving the nervous system. It can start with a mere tremor of one hand and advances to slow movement and stiffness. The face might show little no symptoms in the beginning but the speech might become slurred. With every passing day, the condition worsens. This condition has no permanent cure but the symptoms can be improved with proper medication.

What are the symptoms?
Some unmistakable symptoms include the following:

A sudden shaking of the limb. A sudden tremor of the hand is a very common symptom of this disease.
Stiffness of the muscles that can limit the range of motion and sharp pain.
The posture of the body might get compromised. Often balancing problems are witnessed among many patients.
There could be problems with speech leading to soft, slurry or quick speech. The speech in some cases can become monotonous devoid of inflexions.
Parkinson s disease can lead to slow movement and makes performing of simple tasks difficult.
Patients often find writing very difficult
What are the possible causes of Parkinson s disease?

Specific genetic mutation can lead to Parkinson s disease in folks who have a family history of Parkinson s disease. Certain variations of the gene increase the risk of this disease
Exposure to certain environmental factors or certain toxins can trigger Parkinson s disease in an individual.
Certain cells in the brain known as Lewy bodies can trigger Parkinson s disease.
A certain kind of protein cells within the brain known as alpha-synuclein can trigger the Parkinson s disease in an individual
What are the risk factors?

Heredity: Having an immediate family member or close relative suffering from Parkinson s disease can increase the risk of getting this disease in an individual
Age: Although not a prime risk factor, but an individual over the age of over 60 have an increased risk of getting this disease
Toxins: Exposure to pesticide or certain herbicide increase the risk of Parkinson s
Sex: Men are more likely to get Parkinson s disease than women
What is the medication for Parkinson s disease?

Carbidopa-levodopa: This is a natural chemical that gets passed to the brain and is converted to dopamine by the body. The benefits of this medication might reduce with increased symptoms.
Carbidopa-levodopa infusion: A popular drug in this category is known as the Duopa. It is administered directly into the small intestine in the form of gel through a feeding tube.
MAO-B inhibitors: Drugs from this group include rasagiline and selegiline. This is powerful medicine. Many patient experiences hallucination during the initial days of consuming these drugs.
Anticholinergics: This medication is mainly used to counter tremors of the limbs in the early stage of Parkinson s disease.

Parkinson's Disease - Know The Risks Involved!

Blessed are the people who can effortlessly fall asleep, especially at night. For some people, sleep appears like a distant dream that haunts them for days. Medically known as Insomnia, the disorder can take a toll on the physical and mental health of the individual affecting their personal as well as professional life to a great extent. The sleeping disorder may be temporary (Transient Insomnia) or long-lasting (Chronic that may persist for months). 

Some individuals may suffer from insomnia on and off (Intermittent Insomnia). Short-term insomnia may last for a few days or weeks and often improves on its own. Chronic insomnia needs medical attention at the earliest to avoid further aggravation and discomfort. On an average, a person needs 6-8 hours of sleep daily. In case of insomnia, a person may experience difficulties in falling asleep in spite of being tired and exhausted. Some may also not be able to enjoy a sound sleep (interrupted sleep).

Homeopathy and Insomnia
Homeopathic treatment has been a revelation in dealing with insomnia. With a holistic approach and the use of natural products and herbs, homoeopathy believes that evaluating and eliminating the underlying trigger can bring about drastic improvements in the case of insomnia. Insomnia may be an outcome of health conditions (secondary insomnia) such as diabetes, asthma, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, gastroesophageal reflux disease, Alzheimer's disease over-functioning of the thyroid. However, the trigger can be stress, anxiety, following an unhealthy sleep cycle, having the dinner late at night and retiring to bed immediately after (often termed as Primary Insomnia). The Homeopathic approach in treating insomnia involves a right mix of the homoeopathic medicines and bringing about the necessary changes in the lifestyle habits. Understanding the pattern and type is important to treat insomnia.

In the case of primary insomnia, in addition to the intake of medicines, the homoeopathic approach also emphasizes upon eliminating the lifestyle habits that triggered the sleeping disorder.

Time and again, homeopathy has stressed that there should at least be a 3 hours gap between dinner and sleep to ensure there is a better digestion of food without any incidences of acid reflux or heartburn. Avoid heavy or spicy foods for dinner. Keep the dinner light and simple.
Try to live a stress-free life. Meditation, yoga, exercise, listening to soft and light music, can play an instrumental role to keep the mind and the body calm and relaxed.
A healthy sleep cycle (sleep early, wake up early) can go a long way to reduce the incidences of insomnia, especially Transient and Intermittent.

Insomnia - Why Homeopathy Is The Best Form Of Treatment?

Firstly, what you need to realise is that Alzheimer s is not dementia and the main point you need to remember about the difference between the two is that the former is a disease while the latter is a syndrome. Alzheimer s is a neurodegenerative disease, it breaks down the cognitive functions of the brain and reduces a person s ability to function properly. It s one of the foremost reasons for untimely senility in middle-aged to old-aged persons.

It can be a scary time for the patient themselves as well as for friends and family alike but fear not, there are ways to reduce the chances of suffering from this painful predicament. Here are a few easy hacks to keep in mind to stave off the risk of Alzheimer s:

Fix your diet: Cut down on saturated fats and construct a diet combining lots of healthy vitamin and mineral rich foods, fruits and vegetables. Vitamin E is essential as well as vitamin B12 which can also be taken in the form of supplements. Vitamin E can be found in foods like spinach and even nuts. Rush University Medical Centre in Chicago has, after a lot of research, developed the MIND and DASH diets. The Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet collates portions of the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet to create the perfect combination that has been shown to reduce the risk of Alzheimer s by 53 percent.
Exercise mental and physical: A sedentary lifestyle is one of the major causes of Alzheimer s because it leads to slower brain activity and an overall unhealthy lifestyle. To break out of this you need to regularly exercise and not just physical exercises but also mental exercises such as solving mental maths and crosswords and reading books and newspapers. There are a lot of apps concerning games that help boost brain activity on the market that can help as well. Physical exercise can include swimming, brisk walking, joking and even gardening.
Reduce stress: Stress proves to be a huge issue for the brain contributing to its damage by putting a lot of pressure on it. Try to relax more by improving your sleep cycle, resting as and when required, and not overworking yourself.
Aromatherapy: Essential oils have been shown to work wonders, by reducing stress and relaxing the mind. Lavender, rosemary, lemon and even orange are some great options you can try out. These oils can help rejuvenate damaged brain and nerve cells.
Meditation: Studies have shown that regular meditation helps boost grey matter in the brain, and along with yoga, keeps the minds and bodies of middle-aged people active and better focused contributing to the overall health of the brain.

Life Hacks! How To Beat Alzheimer's

Don't wait any longer, manage your Neurophysiologist online with a Lybrate doctor today

Consult for Neurophysiologist - Online and Easy!

FilterClear All

COMMON SPECIALITIES

COMMON ISSUES