What Happens During Seizures?

Causes

Seizures can be caused by trauma to the brain, degenerative neurological diseases, stroke, aneurysms, brain tumors and infectious diseases. Anything that can affect brain function could be the cause for a seizure. Epilepsy is the disease that describes unusually high or regular seizure activity, but like the seizures themselves, epilepsy has a wide range of symptoms and classifications.

Definition

The word "seizure" is a general term that can describe a broad range of unusual brain function. A seizure occurs when brain cells misfire, triggering other results throughout the body including hallucinations, convulsions and many other effects, some of them very mild.

Partial Seizures

Partial seizures (also called focal seizures) are those that involve only a localized part of the brain. They sometimes include unconsciousness or a loss of memory. Depending on the area of the brain affected, these seizures can cause sensory hallucinations and localized involuntary muscle contraction.

General Seizures

General seizures can be mild, but the most famous general seizure is the tonic-clonic variety, also known as a grand mal seizure. The worst seizures include massive, irregular brain activity, which is accompanied by intense physical spasms and loss of consciousness. Tonic-clonic seizures can be life-threatening if they aren't treated.

Resources

• Epilepsy.com
• Instructional seizure video
• The Mayo Clinic