Question
My son was diagnosed with epileptic seizure symptoms at 4 months old. After three days of ACTH treatment and Depakote medication, the symptoms disappeared. Two years later, a brain electrography showed normal results. Under the guidance of a doctor, we stopped taking Depakote in April this year. Unexpectedly, four months after stopping the medication, my child began to experience symptoms such as arm rigidity, clenching of the teeth, and involuntary twitching. These symptoms have recurred seven times since August 10th. As a mother, I am in agony and urgently need expert guidance and diagnosis. Thank you in advance to all the experts.
Answer
Hello! Based on the information you have provided, I will offer a preliminary analysis that I hope will be helpful to you. Firstly, in clinical practice, the symptoms your child is experiencing are commonly referred to as infantile convulsions. The main symptoms include convulsions of the whole body or localized muscles, accompanied by varying degrees of consciousness impairment. If a convulsion lasts more than 30 minutes or if there are no clear intervals between frequent attacks, it is known as convulsive status epilepticus. This condition, if it persists for more than 20 minutes, can lead to brain damage. Let’s look at the causes of this disease:
- Infectious diseases: Most often accompanied by fever, but in severe cases, fever may not be present. The infectious causes can be divided into intracranial and extracranial infections. A. Intracranial infections: such as