In our case, the respiratory events associated with the patient’s sleep apnea were mistaken for epileptic seizure and were being treated with antiepileptic medications. A video-EEG recording was able to finally prove the nature of the spells, and treatment of the sleep apnea with CPAP alleviated the patient’s problem.
How can I tell if I had a seizure in my sleep?
Nocturnal seizures happen while a person is falling asleep or waking up. They can cause unusual nighttime behavior, such as waking for no reason, urinating while sleeping, and jerking and shaking of the body. They are linked to epilepsy. Nocturnal seizures are usually a type of seizure called a tonic-clonic seizure.
What sleep disorders look like seizures?
Cataplexy and parasomnia are the most common sleep disorders that can be confused with epilepsy. Cataplexy is a sudden loss of muscle tone or falls caused by strong positive or negative emotions; it is usually a symptom of narcolepsy. Parasomnias are complex or bizarre behaviours that result from sleep.
What does a sleep seizure feel like?
A nocturnal seizure occurs when you’re sleeping. It can cause abnormal behaviors during sleep, like shouting or thrashing around. If you stay asleep during the seizure, you likely won’t feel anything. But it might feel like you’re having recurring nightmares.
Can sleep apnea be mistaken for a seizure Related Questions
What is apnea seizure?
For people with epilepsy, a lack of sleep can trigger a seizure. Since sleep apnea results in poor quality sleep, the chances of having a seizure during the night increases. People with sleep apnea can stop breathing while they sleep for several seconds at a time.
What can be misdiagnosed as seizures?
Mental health conditions (e.g. schizophrenia) Eclampsia. Migraines. Sleep disorders (e.g. narcolepsy)
What triggers sleep seizures?
It’s believed that sleep seizures are triggered by changes in the electrical activity in your brain during certain stages of sleeping and waking. Nighttime seizures occur most often in the early morning around 5 a.m. to 6 a.m. and occur least often shortly after falling asleep.
How long do sleep seizures last?
Frontal lobe seizures are a type of partial epilepsy that begins in the frontal lobe, the part of the brain behind the forehead. Frontal lobe seizures are brief (generally not more than 2 minutes) and sometimes violent. They usually or always happen during sleep and can be followed by brief confusion.
How do you know if a seizure is real?
The most useful test in confirming epilepsy is an electroencephalogram (EEG). This records electrical activity in the brain including abnormal spikes in electrical activity patterns.
What medical conditions are like seizures?
Movement disorders ‚Äî Tics, tremors, and other involuntary movements can look like a myoclonic seizure or focal seizure, but they may be caused by things like Tourette’s syndrome, Parkinson’s disorder, Huntington’s disease, and other disorders that affect the brain.
What causes seizures in adults with no history?
Seizures in adults with no seizure history can be caused by a number of factors ranging from high blood pressure, drug abuse and toxic exposures to brain injury, brain infection (encephalitis) and heart disease.
How can you tell the difference between epilepsy and seizures?
Epilepsy vs Seizures A seizure is a single occurrence, whereas epilepsy is a neurological condition characterized by two or more unprovoked seizures.
What medication is used for nocturnal seizures?
These seizures often can be well controlled with anti-seizure medications like oxcarbazepine (Trileptal) or carbamazepine (Tegretol or Carbatrol). Other medications used are levetiracetam (Keppra), gabapentin (Neurontin), zonisamide (Zonegran), lacosamide (Vimpat), eslicarbazepine acetate (Aptiom), and others.
What does a low blood pressure seizure look like?
These symptoms may include lightheadedness, sweating, pale skin, blurred vision, nausea, vomiting, and feeling warm, among others. Syncope may also be associated with a short episode of muscle twitching. If a person does not completely lose consciousness and muscle strength it is referred to as presyncope.
What do mini seizures feel like?
A simple partial seizure can cause: a general strange feeling that’s hard to describe. a “rising” feeling in your tummy ‚Äì like the sensation in your stomach when on a fairground ride. a feeling that events have happened before (d√©j√† vu)
Can lack of oxygen cause a seizure?
When the brain goes longer than five minutes with low oxygen it can cause: Coma (a deep state of unconsciousness) Seizures (uncontrolled unwanted movements, sensations, or behaviors) Brain death (when there is no measurable activity in the brain)
What are 4 signs of a seizure?
Staring. Jerking movements of the arms and legs. Stiffening of the body. Loss of consciousness. Breathing problems or stopping breathing. Loss of bowel or bladder control. Falling suddenly for no apparent reason, especially when associated with loss of consciousness.
What is a nocturnal seizure?
A form of epilepsy, nocturnal seizures are uncontrolled spasms or convulsions that happen while you sleep. People who have nocturnal seizures often struggle with disrupted sleep, which in turn aggravates the seizures. It becomes a cycle, and it’s not always easy to recognize the connection.
Why do I have seizures but not epilepsy?
Seizures that are not due to epilepsy are sometimes called ‘non-epileptic seizures’. They can have a physical cause such as low blood sugar (hypoglycaemia) or may be related to how the heart is working. Or they may have a psychological cause.
What are seizures that don’t seem like seizures?
What is an absence seizure? An absence seizure causes a short period of ‚Äúblanking out‚Äù or staring into space. Like other kinds of seizures, they are caused by brief abnormal electrical activity in a person’s brain.