A seizure can be frightening to witness, especially when a person suddenly becomes unresponsive, stiffens, jerks or behaves unusually. But seizures do not always look the same. Some may involve obvious shaking, while others may cause brief staring, unusual sensations, confusion or temporary loss of awareness.
Understanding what is a seizure, why it happens and what to do during an episode can help you respond appropriately and know when medical attention is needed.
What Is a Seizure?
A seizure is a sudden episode caused by abnormal electrical activity in the brain. Depending on which part of the brain is affected, a person may experience changes in movement, awareness, sensation, emotions, behaviour, vision, hearing or speech.
Seizures can be brief and subtle or may cause strong, uncontrolled movements of the arms and legs. Not every seizure involves loss of consciousness or shaking.
What Causes Seizures?
Several factors can trigger or contribute to seizures. Some common causes include:
- Previous brain injury or stroke
- Brain infections
- Brain tumours or other structural abnormalities
- Certain genetic conditions
- Very low blood sugar or other metabolic disturbances
- Alcohol or certain drug withdrawal
- Some medicines or toxic substances
- High fever, particularly in young children
- Epilepsy
Sometimes, even after medical evaluation, doctors may not identify the exact cause. A seizure can also occur because of a temporary trigger without necessarily meaning that the person has epilepsy.
What Are the Symptoms of a Seizure?
Seizure symptoms can vary widely from person to person. They may include:
- Sudden loss of awareness or consciousness
- Staring blankly for a short period
- Uncontrolled jerking of the arms or legs
- Stiffening of the body
- Repetitive movements such as lip-smacking or hand movements
- Temporary confusion
- Unusual smells, tastes or visual experiences
- Tingling or numbness
- A sudden feeling of fear or déjà vu
- Difficulty speaking or understanding
- Loss of bladder control in some cases
While this list outlines the most common warning signs, epilepsy symptoms are highly diverse. A person's specific symptoms depend entirely on which region of the brain is affected and how far the abnormal electrical activity spreads during a seizure..
What Is a Seizure Attack?
“Seizure attack” is a commonly used phrase to describe a seizure episode. In medical terms, seizure is generally the preferred term.
A seizure may last only a few seconds or several minutes, and its appearance can vary depending on the type of seizure.
What Should You Do During a Seizure?
If someone is having a seizure:
- Stay calm and remain with the person.
- Move sharp or dangerous objects away.
- Cushion their head if possible.
- Loosen tight clothing around the neck.
- Time how long the seizure lasts.
- As soon as the uncontrollable movements of body subside, turn the person on their side if appropriate and stay with them until they recover.
- Do not hold the person down or try to stop their movements.
- Do not put fingers, spoons, food, water or medicines into their mouth.
These basic seizure first aid measures can help reduce the risk of injury while the episode passes.
When Is a Seizure an Emergency?
Seek urgent medical help if:
- The seizure lasts for five minutes or longer.
- Another seizure starts before the person has recovered.
- The person has difficulty breathing or does not regain consciousness.
- The person is seriously injured.
- The seizure occurs in water.
- The person is pregnant or has another serious medical condition.
- It is the person's first known seizure.
A first seizure should be medically evaluated, even if the person feels completely normal afterwards.
How Are Seizures Diagnosed?
A doctor will usually ask what happened before, during and after the episode. Information from someone who witnessed the event can be particularly useful.
Depending on the situation, evaluation may include:
- Neurological and physical examination
- Blood tests
- Electroencephalogram (EEG)
- CT or MRI brain imaging
- Other tests based on the suspected cause
The exact tests needed depend on the person's symptoms, medical history and clinical findings.
Does One Seizure Mean Epilepsy?
No. A single seizure does not necessarily mean that a person has epilepsy.
Some seizures are triggered by an immediate problem, such as a metabolic disturbance, infection, medication or substance-related issue. Others may be unprovoked and require further assessment to determine the risk of recurrence.
A neurologist can assess the circumstances of the seizure and decide whether further testing or treatment is needed.
How Are Seizures Treated?
Treatment depends on the type of seizure, its cause and the risk of recurrence. Some people may need treatment for an underlying condition, while those diagnosed with epilepsy may require anti-seizure medicines. Other treatments may be considered in selected cases.
Medicines should not be started, stopped or changed without medical advice.
How PB Health Can Support You
If you or a family member has experienced a seizure, a neurologist at PB Health Hospital, IFFCO Chowk, Gurugram, can review the episode, medical history, medications and available reports and guide further evaluation and treatment based on the findings. As a neuro hospital, PB Health can support further neurological evaluation and treatment based on the findings.
Conclusion
Understanding why seizures happen and recognising possible warning signs can help families respond calmly during an episode. Seizures can have many causes and may look very different from one person to another.
If someone experiences a first seizure, repeated episodes or a prolonged seizure, medical evaluation is important to identify the possible cause and guide appropriate treatment.