Grand Mal Seizure | Medicines & Support Care Is All Needed To Handle It
Seizures have been thought of a kind of hereditary problem but nowadays people with chronic diabetes, poor diet and high level of stress can also be its victim. Seizures are caused when the neuron is unable to transmit signals from one neuron to another in the usual order in the brain. Grand mal seizure is a common kind of seizure that affects every part of the brain and causing complete unconsciousness. Researchers have been in dilemma as to what causes it but they often describe it as an act of neurological disorder, which they have termed as neurofibromatosis.
Various Medicines Are Avaliable To Cure Grand Mal Seizure But Always Take A Proper Advise From Doctor
Some Common Medicines
There are many treatments available in the market for treating grand mal seizures. But the following are few most common medicines that you can make yourself familiar:-
- Phenytoin – It’s one of the oldest medicine, it mainly acts on sodium channels in the brain. It is not used most often because it has number of side effects.
- Phenobarbital – It is mainly given to adults. It works by secreting GABA in larger amount which produces sedation in the brain. It is not advised for children because it may lead to memory loss in them due to sedation in the brain.
- Valproic Acid – This is most commonly used. It is a combination of GABA secretion and sodium channel. Its normal side effects may cause drowsiness, stomachache but its severe side effects may lead to liver damage.
- Topiramate – It works by blocking carbonic anhydrase, a main activity of the brain. It is common for both adult and children. It also has side effects both severe and common.
Any medicine should be taken under special instruction of the doctor. These are most common drugs to treat generalized or grand mal seizure but they may not work too as seizure kind and type always differ from person to person.
Neurological Disorder Causes Grand Mal Seizure
Stop Alcohol And Drug Use Before It’s Too Late
There are many factors that can contribute to grand mal seizure. Following could be few of them:-
- If you have a family history of a person suffering with any kind of seizure.
- Any kind of injury to the brain may also result in seizures attack.
- Sleep disorder may also give arise to seizures in few cases.
- Problems in the body that causes electrolyte imbalance.
- Use of cocaine and other explicit drugs.
- Addiction to drink heavy alcohol.
Follow a ketogenic diet which is composed of high fat and low carbohydrate food to maintain a healthy body to fight against seizure. When the body starts burning fat, it secretes ketones and they help in controlling seizures.
Feel Free To Transfer Knowledge To Others
People often find themselves frightened after having a grand mal seizure attack as it is repetitive in nature. You should not worry about it and if you are suffering with grand mal seizure or any kind of seizure it might be very helpful that you talk about it with people who are suffering with the same and transfer knowledge about it. There are many support group and Epilepsy foundation that you can call and communicate your doubts and questions. So always feel free to do the same, it’s not the end of the world.
Taurine for Prevention of Grand Mal Seizures
Taurine for Prevention of Grand Mal Seizures
The disruption of the electrical activities of the brain can lead to grand mal seizures. This can cause behavioral and physical changes on the person while he is experiencing an attack. Untreated grand mal seizures can be very dangerous. This is the reason why there should be regular consultation with the physician, to ensure that the occurrence of seizure will be controlled. Studies have shown that lack of the amino acid taurine can cause grand mal seizures and also other type of seizures. This has brought researchers to conclude that taurine supplements can help in preventing grand mal seizures.
How Taurine Prevents Grand Mal Seizures
There are a lot of functions of taurine inside the body. First, it maintains the stability of the cell membranes by preventing excessive activities inside the brain cells. There are also studies that say taurine has a role in the electrical activity in the brain. It acts like GABA or the gamma-aminobutyric acid, which is a neurotransmitter. GABA inhibits epileptic activity.
Effectiveness of Taurine
There are still researches that are aiming to know the real effectiveness of taurine in the prevention of grand mal seizures.This is because the effectiveness is not clear for all people. There are some who clearly have benefited from the taurine supplements because the occurrences of their seizures have reduced significantly, but for some people, their seizure attacks have reduced but only temporarily. The bottom line for this is to consult a doctor first before taking any medication for your grand mal seizure.
How Valproate Prevents Grand Mal Seizures
Physicians prescribe valproate to patients who have different kinds of seizures such as grand mal seizure, myoclonic seizures, complex partial seizures and absence seizures. The effect of valproate to the body is preventing seizures from occurring. The exact mechanism of the drug is not yet clear, but it has been researched that it increases certain chemicals in the brain, thus preventing seizures. This drug was discovered in Europe during the 1960’s. The drug was first used clinically in the 1970’s in United States.
Side Effects to Expect from Valproate
Valproate Prevents Grand Mal Seizures
The side effects are not good enough reasons for a patient to stop taking valproate to prevent grand mal seizures. The side effects can cause some discomfort but the weight of its primary purpose is more important. Some of the common side effects of the drug are nausea, vomiting, weight gain, stomach cramps, temporary hair loss, tremors, shaking, and irregular menstrual cycle. The occurrence of the side effects depends on how large the dose of the drug is. The side effects may vary from day to day because there is a tendency that the valproate levels in the body may go up and down. Skin rash is a side effect that is commonly seen in people taking antiepileptic drugs. However, this particular side effect is less seen on patients taking valproate.
Precautions in Taking Valproate
Though valproate prevents grand mal seizures effectively, precautions must still be applied because there can be adverse effects of the drug that can risk the health of the person. First, patients with liver problems should not take the drug. The liver may have a hard time metabolizing the drug, and may cause more harm than good. For pregnant women, valproate is contraindicated because it can be teratogenic to the fetus. And lastly, the rule of thumb for prescribing medicines – if the patient is allergic to one drug, never administer it. Severe allergic reactions may compromise the patient’s respiratory functions, thus it can cause death.
Grand mal seizure is a serious condition that needs medical attention. Given the right drugs, a patient can live a normal life. However, the drugs taken by a patient should be prescribed by a physician. Regular consultation can also help so that the condition of the patient can be monitored properly.