Epilepsy Forum - Confirmation of epilepsy

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Q: Confirmation of epilepsy

asked by: DoctorQuestion on November 20th, 2008

September 5th 2007 my mom went through some very stressful stuff and came to stay with me, she started having really bad headaches everyday and just not feeling well. for 1-2 years leading up to that point she would get dizziness periodically. after a week of having these horrible headaches i woke up in the middle of the night to a sort of screaming, turns out my mom was having a seizure. it only lasted not even a minute, from the point when i got there. it was the epileptic shaking kind. went to hospital had MRI, cats scan etc. nothing showed up. a month later had 8 seizures in a row! she got put on medication to stop the seizures. but she still has the heaches and dizziness every single day for the last year and a half. the doctors are not finding anything, do you have any suggestions. her headaches are now behind her right eye, but have moved around her head. she also says it feels like her head is shaking and she can feel her heart in her head?

Replies(1)

Dr. Nikola Gjuzelov , MD

replied on November 20th, 2008

Epilepsy Answer A4944

An MRI and CT-scan can’t confirm the presence of epilepsy. They can only reveal certain brain disorders (brain tumors, for example) that can cause secondary (symptomatic) epilepsy. These diagnostic procedures won’t reveal anything if your mother has primary (idiopathic) epilepsy.

Epilepsy (no matter the type) can be confirmed with an EEG. But further diagnostic procedures (MRI, CT, lumbar punition, carotid angiography…) can be requested to find out the reason for epilepsy. If no reason is found the epilepsy is idiopathic.

You could consult a neurologist about your mother’s condition.

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