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Senior Citizens Now Fastest Growing Group to Develop
Epilepsy
FDA Magazine feature explores the current information
on the disease
Sept. 28, 2005 - Epilepsy is often considered a
disorder of the young, or a disease that people are born with. But
according to the National Council on the Aging (NCOA), people can
develop epilepsy as they age, and the greatest number of newly diagnosed
cases each year occurs in older people. Senior citizens, those older
than 65, are now the fastest-growing group in America to develop epilepsy.
The current issue of the FDA Consumer Magazine
contains a feature article - Epilepsy and Seizures Can Occur at Any Age
– that explores the disease and its management.
According to the NCOA, knowing the difference
between a "senior moment" and a serious disease such as epilepsy is
critical. Epilepsy often develops as a result of common health problems
in older people, and physicians face the challenge of simultaneously
treating patients for epilepsy as well as for multiple health problems.
In these cases, the potential for adverse drug interaction becomes
increased.
"Epilepsy is one of the most often misdiagnosed,
mistreated, or under-treated conditions affecting seniors," says NCOA
President James Firman, Ed.D. The condition often is characterized by
recurrent seizures affecting awareness, movement, or sensation. Epilepsy
may, however, present itself differently in older people and is often
confused with the normal signs of aging. Because epilepsy is more often
associated with seizures causing convulsions, the more subtle but
potentially dangerous symptoms, such as hearing unusual sounds, blurred
vision, or sudden anxiety, are often overlooked.
Although there are a number of effective therapies
for treating epilepsy, treating older people poses special challenges.
The older anti-epileptic drugs, called first generation, are primarily
used to treat the most common type of seizures. But they are far from
ideal for older people because, according to the NCOA, these drugs can
be difficult to dose accurately, they can interact with other drugs
often taken by the group, and they can have side effects such as heart
toxicity, weight gain, and bone loss.
Today, nearly 3 million people in the United States
have been diagnosed with epilepsy in one of its many forms, according to
the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS).
Fortunately, scientific discoveries about how the brain works have
enabled about 80 percent of those diagnosed with epilepsy to benefit
from modern medicines and an implantable device regulated by the Food
and Drug Administration, and to live productive lives. The most recent
anti-epileptic treatment approved by the FDA was Lyrica (pregabalin), in
June 2005.
What Is Epilepsy?
Epilepsy is a neurological condition that can
produce brief disturbances, called seizures, in the brain's electrical
function. According to the NINDS, clusters of nerve cells, or neurons,
in the brain normally generate electrochemical impulses that act on
other neurons, glands, and muscles to produce human thoughts, feelings,
and actions. In epilepsy, the normal pattern of neuronal activity
becomes disturbed briefly when the nerves in the brain "fire"
spontaneously, causing strange sensations, emotions, and behaviors, and
oftentimes seizures with muscle spasms and loss of consciousness.
Brain neurons may fire as many as 500 times a
second during a seizure--much faster than the normal rate of about 80
times a second. This happens occasionally in some people, according to
the NINDS, but may happen up to hundreds of times a day in others.
Doctors have identified hundreds of different
epilepsy syndromes--disorders characterized by a specific set of
symptoms that include seizures. According to the Epilepsy Foundation,
classifying epilepsy by seizure type alone leaves out other important
information about the patient and the episodes themselves. Classifying
epilepsy into syndromes takes a number of characteristics into account,
such as the type of seizure, behavior during the seizure, and genetics.
Most seizures do not seem to have a detrimental
effect on the brain. Any changes that do occur are usually subtle, and
it is often unclear whether these changes are caused by the seizures
themselves or by the underlying problem that caused the seizures.
Epilepsy can develop at any time in life, but develops most commonly in
early childhood and old age. While it might not be curable, seizures for
some can eventually go away.
Epilepsy is not contagious, nor is it a mental
illness. People with mental retardation may experience seizures, but
according to the NINDS, seizures do not mean that the person has or will
develop mental impairment. While any seizure is cause for concern, the
NINDS says that having one seizure does not by itself mean that a person
has epilepsy.
For more information read the complete article –
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For the FDA Consumer Magazine home page –
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