What condition can mimic a seizure?

Movement disorders — 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 can be mistaken for a seizure?

Movement disorders such as Tourette's syndrome or other uncontrolled tics are sometimes mistaken for partial seizures. People with Tourette's syndrome may grunt, clear their throats or even curse involuntarily.

What can cause seizure like symptoms?

What is like a seizure but not a seizure?

PNES are attacks that may look like epileptic seizures but are not epileptic and instead are cause by psychological factors. Sometimes a specific traumatic event can be identified. PNES are sometimes referred to as psychogenic events, psychological events, or nonepileptic seizures (NES).

What causes false seizures?

Psychogenic nonepileptic seizures, previously known as pseudoseizures, usually have a psychological cause, such as severe mental stress. However, they are different from epilepsy and do not involve changes to electrical impulses in the brain.

Psych Conditions That Mimic Seizures | Epilepsy

Can you be misdiagnosed with seizures?

Background: As many as 20% to 30% of epileptics may have been misdiagnosed. Many of these patients may have cardiovascular syncope, with abnormal movements due to cerebral hypoxia, which may be difficult to differentiate from epilepsy on clinical grounds.

What is a pseudo seizure?

PSEUDOSEIZURES, also called "psychogenic seizures," "nonepileptic seizures," or "hysterical seizures," are clinical events that resemble epileptic seizures but are not associated with abnormal cortical electrical discharges.

What is Rasmussen syndrome?

Rasmussen's encephalitis (RE) is a very rare, chronic inflammatory neurological disease that usually affects only one hemisphere (half) of the brain. It most often occurs in children under the age of 10 but can also affect adolescents and adults.

Will an EEG show past seizures?

An EEG can usually show if you are having a seizure at the time of the test, but it can't show what happens to your brain at any other time. So even though your test results might not show any unusual activity it does not rule out having epilepsy.

How can you tell the difference between a pseudo seizure and a seizure?

During an attack, findings such as asynchronous or side-to-side movements, crying, and eye closure suggest pseudoseizures, whereas occurrence during sleep indicates a true seizure.

Can a doctor tell if you've had a seizure?

Tests for diagnosing seizures

If this is your first seizure, your doctor may want to do some scans to look at the structures in your brain. A common form of imaging is MRI. Your doctor may also want to assess how the naturally occurring activity in your brain is functioning. To do this, an EEG is performed.

What does a non epileptic seizure look like?

Non- epileptic seizures may appear to be generalized convulsions, similar to grand mal epileptic seizures, characterized by fall- ing and shaking. They also may resemble petit mal epileptic seizures, or complex partial seizures, characterized by tem- porary loss of attention, staring into space or dozing off.

What is a vasovagal seizure?

Vasovagal syncope (vay-zoh-VAY-gul SING-kuh-pee) occurs when you faint because your body overreacts to certain triggers, such as the sight of blood or extreme emotional distress. It may also be called neurocardiogenic syncope. The vasovagal syncope trigger causes your heart rate and blood pressure to drop suddenly.

Do seizures show up on MRI?

Does epilepsy show up on MRI scans? No, not necessarily. An MRI scan can help your doctor understand some of the possible underlying structural causes of your seizures. However, for many people there is no structural cause behind their epilepsy and so the brain scan comes back 'normal'.

What is differential diagnosis for seizures?

Differential diagnosis of epileptic seizures may include: concussion, drug intoxication or withdrawal, migraine, psychogenic nonepileptic events, panic attacks, sleep disorders, syncope, transient global amnesia, and transient ischemic attack (TIA).

What can mimic a seizure on an EEG?

What does a neurologist do for seizures?

If you have spells that may be seizures, your primary doctor probably will send you to see a neurologist, a doctor who specializes in the brain and nervous system. The neurologist will perform a complete neurological exam to find out whether an area of your brain is functioning abnormally.

What bloodwork is used for seizures?

For seizures with unknown causes, simple blood tests can be a valuable aid for quickly defining the etiology, particularly with certain metabolic and toxic encephalopathies. For this reason, CK, electrolytes, creatinine, liver and renal function tests should be measured on at least one occasion.

What is sunflower syndrome?

Sunflower syndrome is a rare, epileptic disorder characterized by highly stereotyped seizures. During these seizures, individuals with Sunflower syndrome turn toward a bright light while simultaneously waving one hand in front of their eyes. This unique behavior is coupled with abrupt lapses in consciousness.

What is the Landau Kleffner syndrome?

What is Landau-Kleffner syndrome? Landau-Kleffner syndrome (LKS) is a rare, childhood disorder of the nervous system. It features the sudden or gradual development of aphasia (the inability to understand or express language) and repeated seizures.

What is Ohtahara syndrome?

Ohtahara syndrome is a rare form of epilepsy characterized by seizures and developmental delays that usually occur within the first three months of life (most often within the first 10 days). Some cases are caused by a brain abnormality, metabolic disorder, or gene mutation, while other cases have no known cause.

What are phantom seizures?

Someone having an absence seizure may look like he or she is staring blankly into space for a few seconds. Then, there is a quick return to a normal level of alertness. This type of seizure usually doesn't lead to physical injury.

What is psychogenic seizure?

Psychogenic nonepileptic seizures are episodes of movement, sensation, or behaviors that are similar to epileptic seizures but do not have a neurologic origin; rather, they are somatic manifestations of psychologic distress.

What is a common epilepsy misdiagnosis?

Some of the common types of nonepileptic seizure disorders include abnormal heart rhythms, Tourette Syndrome, or Narcolepsy, a sleep disorder. Meningitis – This condition can cause swelling in the spinal cord, as well as membranes in the brain. Some of the symptoms can mimic those of epilepsy.

Can anxiety be mistaken for a seizure?

The symptoms of anxiety – particularly panic attacks – can look and feel a lot like the symptoms of some types of epileptic seizure. This means that both conditions can be misdiagnosed. A panic attack is a sudden, intense episode of anxiety. These can affect some people with high levels of anxiety.