What Do the Symptoms of Pediatric Epilepsy Look Like?

Question

What Do the Symptoms of Pediatric Epilepsy Look Like?

Answer

Pediatric epilepsy can present in four main symptom types, including grand mal seizures, petit mal seizures, psychomotor seizures, and focal seizures. Grand mal seizures typically involve loss of consciousness and are divided into the prodromal, tonic, clonic, and postictal phases. Petit mal seizures may cause brief loss of consciousness and occur frequently and suddenly. Psychomotor seizures often relate to temporal lobe abnormalities and may first appear around the age of 20, accompanied by hallucinations, illusions, and automatism. Focal seizures manifest as rhythmic twitching in a part of the body, which can spread to one side or the entire body.