Your brain's cells communicate by transmitting electrical impulses to other areas of your body, including muscles, nerves, and other regions of your brain. Sometimes, when these become faulty, the signals may be too many or few, which may result in a seizure.
Seizures are associated with any form of epilepsy, which can even occur during sleep. Epilepsy is the most prevalent cause of seizures. Epilepsy is confirmed when you have two or more unprovoked seizures at least 24 hours apart that are not caused by another medical condition. Epilepsy is most commonly diagnosed in children under the age of 10 and adults over the age of 55.
There are many different kinds of seizures in epilepsy, which can be broadly categorized as generalized seizures and focal, or partial, seizures. Seizures that occur while sleeping are associated with night-time seizures, which commonly start in childhood. Approximately 70 to 80 percent of seizures in children with benign rolandic epilepsy occur when they are asleep.
Nighttime seizures are linked to the following types of epilepsy:
According to researchers, two-thirds of seizures occur between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m.
It can be difficult for parents or caretakers to recognize nocturnal seizures, especially in children, but symptoms may include:
Sleep seizures can be easily confused with parasomnia, an umbrella term for a group of sleep disorders, and hence can be difficult to diagnose. Sleep disorders include:
To determine and differentiate between epilepsy and sleep disorders and to confirm the diagnosis of epilepsy, the doctor needs to take a complete history and select the form and type of seizures. Questions might include:
Tests required to diagnose this condition may include:
Consult a doctor right away if you think your kid or newborn is suffering seizures at night. You can assess your child by:
Nocturnal epileptic seizures can be dangerous and sometimes fatal. A person may be more prone to self-inflicted injury after having a seizure while they are asleep. It is more common for those who have nocturnal seizures to experience low blood oxygen levels both during and immediately following the seizure. Additionally, they have a higher likelihood of continuing to have abnormal brain activity following the seizure.
The right kind of treatment will depend on first getting the proper diagnosis of the type of epilepsy the person has, the type of seizure, the cause, and any other coexisting medical conditions or conditions that may trigger epileptic seizures. Treatments include:
Nighttime seizures, or nocturnal seizures, usually occur in particular forms of epilepsy. It is most common in children, and noticing the symptoms and lack of certainty is the drawback of this kind of epilepsy as it can be masked or confused with sleep disorders. Proper monitoring and assessment by the parent or caregiver are important, and if epilepsy is doubted, you should immediately consult the doctor. Most kinds of epilepsy are usually treatable. With the right kind of medicines and treatment modalities, nocturnal seizures can be avoided.
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