Is it possible to be seizure free

The longer the time a person is seizure free on medications, the better chance of coming off medicines. More than 50 out of children outgrow their epilepsy. Twenty years after the diagnosis, 75 out of people will have been seizure free for at least 5 years, although some may still need to take daily medication. People who have surgery and become seizure free may be able to come off seizure medicine. However, some people may need to stay on their medication to prevent seizures from coming back, even after surgery.

What if I am still having seizures while taking seizure medications? If you continue to have seizures while taking seizure medications, ask the following questions.

Is your diagnosis correct? Sometimes people are diagnosed with seizures but they may not be caused by electrical discharges or storms in the brain. Do you know what type of seizures you have? Some medicines work best for specific types of seizures. This information will help the doctor choose the best medicine to use.

Obviously this is frustrating for people with epilepsy and their families. The short answer is, sometimes. Epileptic seizures happen when clusters of neurons send signals rapidly and abnormally. Epileptic seizures can cause involuntary movements, convulsions, changes in behavior and emotions, and other symptoms depending on which parts of the brain are affected. Epilepsy symptoms also vary in the frequency of seizures, particularly between children and adults.

Generally, the more seizures someone has, the worse it is for their brain. If seizures are interfering with your life , find a neurologist near you. Genetics, brain injuries and tumors, infections, strokes, and other conditions that affect the brain can cause epilepsy to develop.

An epileptologist is a neurologist who specializes in epilepsy. When problems occur such as seizures or side effects of medicine, the primary health provider may send the patient to a neurologist or epileptologists for specialized care. People who have seizures that are difficult to control or who need advanced care for epilepsy may be referred to an epilepsy centers. Epilepsy centers are staffed by providers who specialize in epilepsy care, such as. Many epilepsy centers work with university hospitals and researchers.

There are several ways you can find a neurologist or an epileptologist near you. Your primary care or family provider can tell you about types of specialists. The American Academy of Neurology external icon and the American Epilepsy Society external icon provide a listing of its member neurologists and epilepsy specialists, including epileptologists.

The National Association of Epilepsy Centers external icon also provides a list of its member centers, organized by state. Self-management is what you do to take care of yourself. You can learn how to manage seizures and keep an active and full life. Begin with these tips:. Learn more about managing epilepsy. Women who have epilepsy face special challenges. Hormonal changes can cause some women with epilepsy to have more seizures during their period.

For women with epilepsy, there are also special concerns about pregnancy, because having a seizure and taking certain drugs during pregnancy may increase the risk of harm to the baby.

Women can take the following steps before and during pregnancy to lessen these risks. Most people with epilepsy live a full life. She suggested that medication withdrawal after surgery may be something like a cardiac stress test for coronary artery disease: A tool to screen for underlying pathology. Even good candidates for stopping medication after surgery may prefer not to.

About one-third were on the same doses and types of medications as before surgery; the rest were on reduced doses. Fear of relapse was the most commonly cited reason for continuing treatment. Please send me information about ILAE activities and other information of interest to the epilepsy community. Home Journals Epigraph Epigraph Vol. The evidence, and a debate. Print Share. Epigraph Vol.

Roadblocks to research Because of the variety of epilepsy types and patient characteristics, studies on stopping medication tend to combine heterogenous groups.

Alejandro De Marinis Randomized, double-blind studies—while considered the gold standard of evidence—are ethically compromising. Xinshi Wang In this study, most seizures happened during the first 4 years; in the group with 5 or more years of seizure freedom, most happened during the first 2 years. Re-achieving seizure freedom If seizures are going to recur, research suggests they will do so in the first five years after medications are stopped, with about two-thirds of recurrences happening in the first year.