Course Library

The brain (as we know) is a major organ of the human body and is so sophisticated that we still don't necessarily understand it fully. What we do know though is that there are a number of factors that can cause damage to the brain and the scar tissue left on the brain can alter the way it works. Sometimes this limits a person’s ability to function 'normally' in daily life (either physically, intellectually or mentally).

In terms of epilepsy, electrical activity happens in our brain all the time (as the brain is the organ responsible for communicating and passing on ‘messages’ to the nerves, cells, organs and tissues in the human body). As a result, a seizure can happen when there is a sudden burst of intense electrical activity in the brain.

In March 2017, the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE), introduced a new method to the classification of groups of seizures. Previously, seizures had been categorised into 3 main areas known as focal, generalised and other generalised seizures. By applying a new method, doctors have been able to describe seizures in a more appropriate way and prescribe the most appropriate treatments for each individual. We will therefore explain some of the most important information about seizures in this short course.