Purple Day is observed on March 26. The day is dedicated to creating and raising awareness about epilepsy. More than 85 countries across the globe take part to mark this day. Many organisations and individuals organise events, seminars to make sure that more and more people are aware about it. Unfortunately, till now, there is no cure for epilepsy, but timely treatment can really help. The main symptom of epilepsy is seizure.
Epilepsy is basically a tendency to have seizures that start in the brain. There are two main types of seizures that an individual may go through, the first is generalized seizure which affects the entire brain and the second is partial seizure that affects a part of the brain.
Some of the reasons why a person may have seizures can be because he or she may have inherited epilepsy from one or both parents, high fever, head trauma, a structural change in the brain or changes in brain due to certain conditions. If a seizure is strong, it can cause spasms and uncontrollable muscle twitches which may last for a few seconds or a couple of minutes. The person going through a seizure will not have any memory of it, once it passes.
Here is a list of things that may trigger an epileptic seizure:
- Fever
- Insufficient sleep
- Stress
- Alcohol, caffeine
- Inadequate nutrition
There are multiple reasons that can cause epilepsy, some of these include:
- Stroke
- Vascular diseases
- Lack of oxygen to the brain
- Very high fever
- Serious illness
- Brain Tumour
- Dementia
- Infectious disease like AIDS
- Genetic disorders
- Neurological diseases
Even though there is no cure for the disease, certain medications, surgery, changes in the diet can really help the patient.
Here is a look at things one can follow to make it better:
- Anti-epileptic drugs: These can lessen the number of seizures a person has
- Vagus nerve stimulator: This is a device that is surgically put under the skin on the chest. With this device in place the nerve that runs through the neck is electrically stimulated, which eventually prevents seizures
- Ketogenic Diet: This high fat, low carbohydrate diet has done wonders for people
- Brain Surgery: The process involves removing the affected part of the brain that causes seizures