Psychiatric Seizures

Psychogenic seizures, or psychiatric seizures, do not have a neurological cause. Instead, psychological distress causes the symptoms. According to American Family Physician, 75 percent to 85 percent of patients with psychiatric seizures are female, as of 2010.

Symptoms

Psychiatric seizures resemble epileptic seizures. Symptoms include involuntary movements and involuntary behaviors such as yelling or crying.

Other Psychiatric Symptoms

People who have psychiatric seizures may suffer from conditions such as anxiety or depression. They may have a history of auditory or visual hallucinations or psychosis.

Prevalence of Seizure Disorders in Psychiatric Patients

According to Michael Miller, editor of "Harvard Mental Health Letter," more than 75 percent of people with epilepsy have a diagnosable psychiatric condition and about 10 percent of all patients in psychiatric hospitals have epilepsy. The same abnormalities in the brain can cause both conditions.

Evaluating Psychiatric Seizures

Doctors use video electroencephalography (vEEG) monitoring to evaluate psychiatric seizures. They observe patients having seizures without accompanying changes on the EEG, which would normally been seen in epileptic patients.

Treatment

Doctors prescribe psychotherapy or psychotropic medications or both to treat psychiatric seizures. Patients should also try to identify things that trigger seizures, such as stressful situations, and avoid triggers if they can.

References

• American Family Physician: Psychogenic Nonepileptic Seizures
• Harvard Health Publications: Epilepsy Information