In adults, the most common cause of a seizure, also known as a convulsion or fit, is epilepsy. However, it can be caused by other things, including a head injury, alcohol poisoning, lack of oxygen, after taking certain drugs, or if someone with diabetes has a ‘hypo’ where their blood glucose is too low.
Are fits serious?
Fits (seizures) have a variety of causes, and most fits will not be due to a brain tumour. Fits occurring for the first time should be viewed as a potentially serious symptom, and require further investigation of the cause.
What happens during fits?
During a seizure, many things may happen. Sufferers may lose the ability to swallow, have difficulty speaking, experience twitching or jerking movements in the body, and even experience convulsions. They may lose consciousness, see flashing lights, experience visual hallucinations, and feel out of body sensations.
What are the symptoms of fits?
What are the symptoms of a seizure?
- Staring.
- Jerking movements of the arms and legs.
- Stiffening of the body.
- Loss of consciousness.
- Breathing problems or stopping breathing.
- Loss of bowel or bladder control.
- Falling suddenly for no apparent reason, especially when associated with loss of consciousness.
How do you get fits disease?
Seizures can happen after a stroke, a closed head injury, an infection such as meningitis or another illness. Many times, though, the cause of a seizure is unknown. Most seizure disorders can be controlled with medication, but management of seizures can still have a significant impact on your daily life.
Which food is good for fits?
The modified Atkins diet and the ketogenic diet include high-fat foods such as bacon, eggs, mayonnaise, butter, hamburgers and heavy cream, with certain fruits, vegetables, nuts, avocados, cheeses and fish.
Can stress cause fits?
Emotional stress also can lead to seizures. Emotional stress is usually related to a situation or event that has personal meaning to you. It may be a situation in which you feel a loss of control. In particular, the kind of emotional stress that leads to most seizures is worry or fear.
Are fits curable?
Is there a cure for epilepsy? There’s no cure for epilepsy, but early treatment can make a big difference. Uncontrolled or prolonged seizures can lead to brain damage. Epilepsy also raises the risk of sudden unexplained death.
What is the difference between seizure and fits?
A seizure (the medical term for a fit or convulsion) occurs when there is a sudden burst of electrical activity in the brain temporarily interfering with the normal messaging processes. The brain affects the whole of the body and so where the seizure occurs in the brain, will affect different parts of the body.
What are the 3 types of seizures?
There are now 3 major groups of seizures.
- Generalized onset seizures:
- Focal onset seizures:
- Unknown onset seizures:
What are the 3 main phases of a seizure?
Seizures take on many different forms and have a beginning (prodrome and aura), middle (ictal) and end (post-ictal) stage.
Are seizures painful?
In general, the actual experience of having a seizure does not hurt. Pain during seizures is rare. Some types of seizures make you lose consciousness. In this case, you won’t feel pain during the seizure.
How can I control my fits immediately?
First Aid
- Keep other people out of the way.
- Clear hard or sharp objects away from the person.
- Don’t try to hold them down or stop the movements.
- Place them on their side, to help keep their airway clear.
- Look at your watch at the start of the seizure, to time its length.
- Don’t put anything in their mouth.
Is fits a genetic disease?
Most children of people with epilepsy do not develop seizures or epilepsy. However, since genes are passed down through families, it is possible. Epilepsy is more likely to occur in a brother or sister if the child with epilepsy has generalized seizures.