What is Symptomatic Epilepsy?
Epilepsy can affect anyone. Regardless of age, gender, origin, or living conditions. It is estimated that 5% of the population will experience an electrical storm in the brain at least once – the production of an excessive electrical signal by neurons. However, only every second person diagnosed with epilepsy will find out the cause of their condition. In such cases, we can say that the patient is dealing with symptomatic epilepsy.
What is Symptomatic Epilepsy?
We talk about symptomatic epilepsy when we can clearly identify its cause – a specific reason triggering seizures, which start in the so-called epileptic focus.
Previously, it was diagnosed in only 30% of cases. Today, thanks to better and much more effective diagnostic methods, the cause of epilepsy can be identified in nearly 50% of patients. However, for the youngest patients, this statistic drops. Only one in five parents will learn the reason behind their child’s electrical discharges in the brain.
What are the Causes of Symptomatic Epilepsy?
Doctors often avoid referring to epilepsy as a single disease and instead speak of “epilepsies,” highlighting its various underlying causes. The reasons behind symptomatic epilepsy are numerous. What are they?
Head Injuries
According to statistics, head injuries account for approximately 10% of epilepsy cases across all age groups: newborns, infants, preschool and school-aged children, adolescents, adults, and the elderly (over 60 years old). Interestingly, seizures caused by this type of trauma do not occur immediately but rather activate 2 to 5 years after the incident.
Doctors note that the greatest risk of developing epilepsy comes with losing consciousness during a head injury, combined with severe trauma and brain tissue damage that leaves scarring. Why? Neurons around such a scar (called a lesion) become highly excitable, which can result in electrical discharges. Milder head injuries pose less risk – they are dangerous only if they occur repeatedly.
Meningitis or Encephalitis
Fungal, viral, or bacterial inflammation of the brain’s membranes, spinal cord, and surrounding tissues often accompanies viral or infectious diseases. It leaves behind the aforementioned lesions, which stimulate neurons and can lead to seizures.
Brain Tumors
All known types of brain tumors can trigger epilepsy, though not directly. Tumors provoke seizures by compressing and irritating neighboring neurons, which then cause electrical discharges.
Strokes
From 40% to 60% of seizures, especially in older adults, can be caused by strokes resulting from cardiovascular diseases. These strokes damage specific areas of the brain, leading to scarring that excites neurons and, consequently, causes seizures. A seizure can occur as early as 24 hours after a stroke.
Metabolic Diseases
Metabolic disorders are conditions resulting from abnormalities in metabolic processes, such as the breakdown and processing of nutrients in the body. Examples include: glucose transporter type 1 deficiency syndrome, mitochondrial diseases, and creatine metabolism disorders.
It should also be noted that epilepsy in the youngest age group often results from brain changes that occurred during fetal development, possibly due to maternal poisoning or illness. Brain damage caused during childbirth is also a factor.
Not Just Symptomatic Epilepsy
It’s worth noting that symptomatic epilepsy is not the only type of seizure patients experience. Based on their causes, doctors distinguish:
- Genetic epilepsy
- Epilepsy of unknown etiology
We’ll write more about these types in upcoming posts on our blog.