Can Muscle Spasms Exclude Epilepsy Even If a Child’s Brain Waves Are Normal?

Question

My daughter is currently 8 months and 3 weeks old. Around 7 months, we noticed that she occasionally tilts her head to the right and raises her shoulder. The frequency of these movements has been increasing. After undergoing an EEG at a Shanghai hospital, the doctor did not observe typical epilepsy waveforms and suggested no treatment was necessary, but also did not provide a specific diagnosis. We are concerned that a single EEG test may not be sufficient to rule out the possibility of epilepsy, and we are worried that this muscle spasm may develop into generalized convulsions. Experts, how should we treat our daughter? We are eagerly awaiting your advice!

Answer

It is recommended to take the child to a regular hospital for epilepsy treatment. Most epilepsy medications can reduce the excitability of the brain’s neurons, thereby controlling epilepsy seizures, but they cannot activate brain cells. Long-term use of these medications may lead to excessively high drug concentrations, which not only fail to effectively control seizures but may also increase the frequency of seizures. Each seizure can cause damage to brain cells.