5 Hospitals For Epilepsy In California

Epilepsy (click for worldwide facilities list): Epilepsy is a brain disorder in which clusters of nerve cells, or neurons, in the brain sometimes signal abnormally. In epilepsy, the normal pattern of neuronal activity becomes disturbed, causing strange sensations, emotions, and behavior or sometimes convulsions, muscle spasms, and loss of consciousness.

Most people with epilepsy can become seizure-free by using a single anti-epileptic drug. Others can decrease the frequency and intensity of their seizures with medication. More than half the children with medication-controlled epilepsy can eventually stop medications and live a seizure-free life. Many adults also can discontinue medication after two or more years without seizures.

If anti-epileptic medications don't provide satisfactory results, your doctor may suggest other treatment options such as surgery, vagus nerve stimulation or a ketogenic diet.

Surgery is most commonly done when tests show that your seizures originate in a small, well-defined area in the temporal lobes or the frontal lobes of your brain. Surgery is rarely an option if you have seizures that start in several areas of the brain or if you have seizures originating from a region of the brain that contains vital brain functions.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/epilepsy/DS00342
http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/epilepsy/epilepsy.htm
Finding the right medication and dosage can be complex.