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Seizures
What
is a Seizure?
A Seizure is a
miscommunication between the nerve cells and the brain.
When a seizure occurs normal brain functions are impaired and
sometimes brain damage can occur. There
are two kinds of seizures, General (tonic-clonic or ‘grand-mal’) and
Partial (temporal lobe). General
seizures affect small areas of the brain while Partial seizures affect the
whole brain. Seizures usually last only a few minutes (in between 1 and 10)
and must run their course before they end.
Causes:
Seizures can be caused
by:
- High
fevers (especially in infants and young children) these are known as
“fever fits”
- Epilepsy
- Brain
injury, strokes
- Infection
- Poison
- Snakebites
(or bites from other venomous creatures)
- Shock
- Heat
stroke
- Vaccinations
- Reactions
or overdoses to medication or drugs
- Diabetes
- Trauma
- Reye’s
syndrome
Treatment: Symptoms and treatment
are as follows:
General
- The
person may yell or cry out
- Stiffen
- Difficulty
breathing (look for pale or bluish skin)
- Jerking
motions
- Falling
- May
last 1-4 minutes
Treatment
- Remain
calm
- Move
all sharp edged objects out of the persons way to help keep them from
injuring themselves
- Monitor
their breathing
- Do
NOT try to restrain the person, you cannot stop the seizure
- Do
not force anything into the persons mouth or give them anything to eat
or drink
Once the seizure has
subsided
- Help
the person lay down and place something soft under their head
- Turn
them to one side so they don’t risk choking on their saliva
- Remove
tight or restricting clothing and jewelry
- The
person will probably feel confused and disoriented.
- They
will also be very tired, let them sleep but stay with them until they
have awoken and are fully awake and alert/aware.
- Do
not give them anything to eat or drink until they have fully recovered
Partial
- The
person may experience convulsions (violent shaking and seizing,
uncontrollable jerks and twitches)
- Glassy
stare
- May
give no response, or an inappropriate response when questioned
- May
sit, stand or walk around aimlessly
- Make
lip smacking or chewing noises
- Appear
to be drunk, drugged, disorderly, or even psychotic.
- Fidgety
- Crying
out
- Falling
over
- Losing
consciousness
- Body
may stiffen
Treatment
- Remain
calm, and call 911 (this may not always be necessary in the case of
epileptics, but is always necessary if the person is
diabetic)
- Move
all harmful objects out of the persons way, or try to direct them away
from them vocally (if they are not convulsing)
- Do
NOT try to restrain the person
- Observe
their behavior, in more severe cases this may become very important
information
- Be
very gentle with the person, and do not be too physical with them
Once the seizure has
subsided
- The
person will be very sleepy, let them sleep
- They
may have a headache
- Give
them no food or drink until after they have rested and are fully alert
and recovered
- The
person may be confused and disoriented
- Turn
them to one side so they don’t risk choking on their saliva
- Remove
tight or restricting clothing and jewelry
Call 911 if
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