What is a gelastic seizure?
Gellastic seizure is a type of epilepsy that manifests itself in the form of an emotional explosion, usually with an unexplained laughter or crying. The root of the word gelastic is gelos , a Greek word that means laughter. Such seizures usually occur very suddenly and the person who has seizures has no control over the event. Since the gelastic seizure is very rare and the symptoms are so special, it is not uncommon that the person with this condition will be some time before the diagnosis is diagnosed.
When a person has a gelastic seizure, one can suddenly start laughing or crying, often quite loud. This can happen at any time, regardless of the surroundings. People who have these seizures without knowing the cause are often embarrassed because they may seem more of inappropriate behavior than epilepsy. Usually, the first gelastic seizure occurs before the child is three years old, but may also occur in older people.
gelic seizure can follow other types of seizures, inclEthno stiffness or twitching, or there may be no other signs of the problem. In many cases, the person who has seizures is fully aware of everything that is happening, but may be confused, why he laughs or cry. Other times, one may not know that there is a problem and has no memory of this event. In most cases, these episodes usually last a minute or less, often only five or 10 seconds from the beginning to the end to the end, which makes diagnosis more difficult, although in some cases they can last much longer.
children with this disease may gradually deteriorate as they age, albeit in different ways, depending on the cause of seizures. They may lose cognitive function, experience a very early advent of puberty or have significant behavior problems. It is important to diagnose the problem as soon as you can start treatment quickly.
It is possible that the hypothalamic hamartoma, the type of brain tumor, is a basic problem for gelastic seizures. This is a benign tumor whoHigs grow in gli cells near the hypothalamus and can be responsible for the appearance of different types of seizures, including gelastic seizures. Other causes of this disorder are lesion of frontal lobe and hemangiomas. The diagnosis is usually made with either computer tomography (CT scanning) or magnetic resonance (MRI).
Treatment of this disease depends on exactly what causes the problem. In some cases, medicines such as dextroamfetamine, phenobarbital and primidone can be used together to help control the frequency and severity of seizures. If the tumor is the cause, this may require surgery or radiation treatment, especially if symptoms other than a gelastic seizure occur.