Anti Convulsant
Anticonvulsants
Anticonvulsants are the drugs used to prevent seizures or convulsions. These medicines are used to reduce the occurrence of various types of Epileptic Seizures/Epilepsy. Anticonvulsants are also known as anti-epileptic drugs. Although all epileptic seizures are not convulsions, epileptic seizures do not cause all convulsions.
Sometimes the word ‘fits’ is often used to describe seizures and convulsions.
Convulsions are the symptom of epileptic seizures. Hence, these two terms, convulsions and seizures, are often used as synonyms. Anticonvulsant drugs are also used to treat other painful conditions such as Postherpetic neuralgia and Fibromyalgia. Fibromyalgia is a medical condition that involves symptoms like:
Causes of Convulsions:
In most cases, the actual cause of epilepsy is not known. Certain conditions may certainly cause epilepsy:
• Strokes
• Head injuries
• Fevers
• Deprivation of oxygen to the brain
• Brain infections/meningitis
• Brain diseases like Alzheimer’s
• Brain tumor
• Congenital disabilities
Signs and Symptoms:
• Epilepsy and convulsions have a difference as the seizures produced by epilepsy are different from those produced with convulsions. Seizures are divided into different types according to the type of symptoms.
• Absence seizures: these types of seizures are produced because of the disconnection of the body from surrounding stimuli. The person may feel the absence from their body, and then they might come back to normal without remembering anything.
• Generalized tonic-clonic seizures: these seizures begin with stiffness in the arms and legs. The person may fall and start biting his cheeks or tongue.
• Partial seizures: the symptoms usually are jerking fingers and hand movements. Partial seizures may be classified as simple or complex. These seizures begin only on one side of the brain and affect those body parts ruled by the side of the brain involved.
Adverse effects of the problem:
The most common type of convulsion is known as generalized convulsions. In this type of convulsion, the most common feature is the loss of consciousness that may lead to the person collapsing. The person in such a condition suffers from a stiff body and jerks continuously. The patient may not stand still; he may fall, bite his tongue, or lose control over his bladder.
Preventive measures:
If you have epilepsy, then it is best to avoid triggers. The patient should avoid:
• Flashing lights
• Use of drugs like cocaine and heroin
• Video games
• Lack of sleep
• Withdrawal symptoms of alcohol or medications
• Low blood sugar levels
Myths and Facts:
• Myth: Epilepsy is contagious
• Fact: just like diabetes and asthma, epilepsy is not contagious, i.e. You cannot catch this disease by coming in contact with the person having seizures.
• Myth: Epilepsy is a kind of spiritual possession
• Fact: Although most educated people now understand that epilepsy is a medical condition, many cultures believe that epileptic seizures occur due to spiritual possession. There is still a need to educate people.
Diagnosis of convulsion conditions:
The diagnosis of epilepsy starts with evaluating the medical history of the person and his family, some physical tests and other tests like EEG, CT scan and MRI scan of the brain. In some cases, blood tests may also be taken.
The CT scan and EEG etc. will be helpful in the identification of causes of seizures; the tests may tell the presence of any tumours/clots or other damages to the brain responsible for causing seizures.
Treatment for convulsion conditions:
Anticonvulsants, also known as anti-epileptic medications, helps to normalize the way nerve impulses travel along with the nerve cells, which helps treat and prevent seizures. When the brain functions normally, the nerve cells connect using controlled electrical signals from one nerve cell to another. They tell your body to do everything it needs to do. Anticonvulsants keep the nerve cell impulses normal so they don’t become uncontrolled. Therefore, they are used in seizure disorders and epilepsy. However, the exact mechanism is still not understood. Still, they are believed to act on neurotransmitters or receptors such as glutamate or by changing electrical channels in the nerve cells.
Anticonvulsants or anti-epileptic drugs work by reducing seizures or activity. The following anticonvulsants are available online:
• Topiramate- Topiramate is available in a Topamac tablet to treat epilepsy. Patients may be asked to take medicine twice daily that helps to reduce their symptoms and improves their condition. Common side effects include dizziness, diarrhoea, dizziness, and sleepiness. Most of them are usually mild and disappear within a few days of regular taking medicine. Topiramate usually takes a few weeks to induce its action. The anti-epileptic drug is suitable for adults and children aged two years and over.
• Lamotrigine- Sold under the brand name Lametec DT 50 and Lametec 100 mg, Lamotrigine is an anti-epileptic drug used to treat epileptic seizures in adults and children. The anti-epileptic drug delays mood episodes in adults with bipolar disorder. Doctors may prescribe this medication in combination with antiseizure medication. Lamotrigine is often prescribed for long-term bipolar disorder (mood disorder). Patients are suffering from this condition experience extreme emotional highs and lows.
• Levetiracetam- It may be used alone or other medications to partial-onset seizures in adults, children, and infants one month of age or older. Doctors may also prescribe Levetiracetam with other medications to treat seizures in adults and children 12 years of age and older with myoclonic epilepsy. It can also be given with other medications to treat primary generalized tonic-clonic seizures in adults and children six years of age or older with epilepsy.
• Divalproex sodium- This medication effectively treats seizure disorders and certain psychiatric conditions and prevents migraine headaches. It restores the balance of certain natural substances in the brain. Oral therapy effectively treats seizures in people with epilepsy who are at least ten years old. Doctors may sometimes prescribe Divalproex together with other seizure medications.
Your doctor may adjust the doses of medication to find the best treatment for you, and many patients find relief from their conditions if they take their medications regularly. More than 70% of the people who take their medicines regularly may find a huge positive difference in their seizure attacks. All these medicines are available at all leading online pharmacies. So, you can buy anticonvulsant drugs online at reasonable rates. Pregnant women should not take this medicine, as the drug may cause congenital disabilities. Never take anticonvulsants with any other drug, as it may cause negative drug interaction.
The important things to know:
• Anticonvulsants are not safe for everyone, and to avoid the side effects of using these, make sure to tell your doctor about the medical conditions you have and the drugs you are taking.
• Never try to alter or stop taking anticonvulsants until your doctor advises you to do so because concluding the drug instantly could cause withdrawal symptoms and makes you prone to redevelop the original problem.
Anticonvulsants, also called antiepileptic, belongs to a group of drugs used to prevent epileptic seizures. Their goal is to decrease the frequency and severity of seizures in people with epilepsy. Anticonvulsants are effective in treating the symptoms of seizures in people with epilepsy. They may also have a place in treating neuropathic pain, bipolar disorder, and migraine prevention.
Impaired memory is one of the most common complaints of patients dealing with epilepsy. And almost all available antiepileptic drugs worsen memory impairment. Memory loss is a greater concern in elderly patients, although the effects of antiepileptic drugs, especially the newer ones, have not been studied in these populations. More research is needed to understand the relative effects of anticonvulsants on memory.
Anticonvulsants help in the prevention and treatment of seizures. Epilepsy is a neurological disorder in which brain activity becomes abnormal, causing seizures or episodes of unusual behaviour, sensations, and sometimes loss of behaviour. The common symptom of epilepsy is recurring seizures. However, symptoms usually depend on the type of seizures you have.
Anticonvulsants work in different ways to prevent seizures by decreasing excitation or enhancing inhibition. Several types of these drugs are recognized as mood stabilizers to treat or prevent mood episodes in bipolar disorder. These drugs are often prescribed alone or with antipsychotic medicine to control mania. Anticonvulsant drugs work by calming hyperactivity in the brain in various ways. This is why some of these medications treat epilepsy and prevent migraines and other brain disorders.
The mode of action of anticonvulsants at the molecular level is not fully understood, and current evidence indicates that most anticonvulsants have more than one mode of action. Blockade of voltage-dependent sodium channels is a direct action of drugs like carbamazepine, lamotrigine, zonisamide, topiramate, oxcarbazepine, and felbamate. This blockage implies that the high-frequency repetitive neuronal firing is selectively prevented, inhibiting seizure activity's spread without hindering the physiological neurotransmission. Some anticonvulsant agents may alter chemical transmission between neurons by interfering with the neurotransmitters, particularly glutamate in the synapses.
Ativan contains Lorazepam, which has antianxiety, sedative, and convulsant effects. Lorazepam belongs to a class of drugs known as benzodiazepine anticonvulsant medication. It enters the brain rapidly and produces an anticonvulsant effect in less than five minutes.
HIE is a brain dysfunction caused by a lack of oxygen and blood flow to the brain. It is one of the most serious birth complications affecting infants. Unfortunately, there is no definite treatment for HIE. Most treatments are directed at supporting the infant's affected organ, providing intensive care, correcting metabolic acidosis, seizure control, and close monitoring. Anticonvulsants are the only specific treatment given to patients with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE).
Avascular necrosis of the femoral head is a rare condition resulting from the interruption of blood supply to the bone. It is caused by various factors, including chronic steroid use, fractures, dislocations, local radiotherapy, alcohol consumption, surgery, and congenital causes, among many others—no reports of anticonvulsants leading to avascular necrosis of the femoral head.
The role of combination therapy in treating epilepsy is undergoing reevaluation. Monotherapy should remain the treatment of choice for people with newly diagnosed epilepsy. However, a combination of two anticonvulsant agents can be considered after failure, resulting from the lack of effectiveness of one or two different monotherapy. Some evidence supports the combination treatment—exercise caution to avoid excessive drug load, which is often associated with increased toxicity.