I saw some mention of these in another thread and wanted to see what this community's experience is with absence seizures and their relation to dementia.
As our neurologist explained to me yesterday, absence seizures are very brief seizures (sometimes called petit mal) where the person doesn't usually fall. Often the person just stops what they are doing, freezes in that position for often less than a minute. Eyes usually remain open. They then come back and can appear as nothing happened.
She also explained that they can cause a period of increased cognitive symptoms after they occur and they are often explain a person who has periods of time where their symptoms worsen. One theory is that if they can use anti-seizure medication to prevent them, they can improve cognitive function in people that have this issue.
Anyone have experience in with absence seizures? Do you use anti-seizure meds? Any improvements in overall cognitive function? Early symptom in your journey or late symptom and what type of dementia was your LO ultimately diagnosed with?
That may be what my husband is having. For the past year he's had what he calls "spells" that usually last less than a minute. He is fully aware of what's going on, though. He tried to explain this to our GP but didn't know exactly how to describe it. He said he feels weird, like he's losing control of both his mind and his body for a few seconds and freezes like you said. After a few seconds he's Ok but he seems worse cognitively after those episodes. We don't have another doctor appointment until October but I will mention absence seizures to him. I had never heard of this but hopefully his doctor has.
My DH seemed to have less of those after I started giving him cinnamon capsules which help regulate blood sugar so I thought maybe it was a temporary drop in blood sugar. This whole thing seems like a guessing game. He is 74, diagnosed just this year but had symptoms for about 3 or 4 years. He's in moderate stage AD.
Catherine, My husband has suffered with Absence Seizures for 8 years, he was 50 years old when they started. Your doctor explained them exactly. The episodes last from 2-3 minutes. With my husband he can answer questions, however, it is like in slow motion & he really doesn't want too. He is very tired for about an hour after these episodes & sometimes doesn't remember having them. When they first started he had sometimes up to 18 in a 24 hour period, since he didn't remember some, he could have had more. He tried numerous combinations of seizure medications, however, Lamictal has been the only one that has helped. Until the last few months he was having 3-4 a month. However, now the Myoclonic jerks & head pain have seemed to replace the seizures. His memory started failing 5 years ago, he is between a 4-5 on the Alzheimer's evaluation scale. In the last 8 years he has had 5 MRI, Lumbar Puncture, EEG'S, CT Scans, PET Scan & numerous blood test, nothing really popped out as to a reason for the dementia, since his memory just kept getting worse every year I basically demanded he have another PET Scan. On July 25th he had a PET Scan which revealed he has Frontal Temporal Dementia. I just knew it wasn't just seizures causing this extreme memory loss. I have tried to find information regarding seizures before dementia, however, I have had no success. Sometimes seizures are present with Alzheimer's in the later stages. I really don't know if the seizures caused the FTD or if he just has both conditions. My husband's maternal grandmother & mother both passed away from dementia, both were over 65 when problems presented. Neither, were treated by a Neurologist, however, neither had seizures. As of now my husband is taking Lamictal for seizures, Namenda, Razadyne ER, Lexapro & Keppra was just added for the Myoclonic Jerks. The neurologist will be re-evaluating his medication with this new information. I have read from other post that Namenda really doesn't help with FTD & could cause more problems. Does your husband have Absence Seizures?
We don't know yet, we are mid diagnosis. My husband is 49 and had cognitive and personality changes (angry, blaming, emotionally detaching from everyone, etc) for a little over 2 years. Mostly frontal lobe stuff with a few memory problems thrown in. Still very functional in most situations, still drives and works but symptoms are increasing and changing slowly.
His MRI revealed numerous lesions in the sub-cortical white mater in the frontal lobe only. My guess is we ultimately will end up with a VaD diagnosis as this progresses but he has none of the risk factors for VaD and is so young. He is able to pull it together concentrate and focus when he has to as he does to work and in the neuropsych testing which he mostly passed. Yet when I returned from a weekend away yesterday he was loading up our dog with Rx pain killers and taking her for 1 hour walks even though she had surgery on her paw on Wednesday. "Why are you taking that dog on long walks?!?" "Oh, I'm not only taking her on walks, I am letting her run and chase balls too, because she likes it and she isn't in pain" "Why are you still giving her her Rx pain killers if she is not in pain?!?!" "I don't know"
He and my brother went to a baseball game early in July and when the national anthem was done my husband was just standing there gone and it took a minute or two to get him back and to sit down. His neuro was very, very interested in that and wants to explore whether or not he is having absence seizures. I am guessing he is because there are other incidences like you describe where I have thought he is just not paying attention when really he is probably not there. He is lining up a 72 hour EEG with a journal for both of us to record how he is feeling and acting during these 72 hours.
If he is having seizures, they are most likely being caused by the lesions in his brain.
This past week I was traveling with my hubby and my teenage daughter, while we were in the air on the plane my husband for the first time had 2 absent seizures which was terrifying to me . His eyes bulged out , mouth open, and clear fluid ran from his nose with his head drop . There were nurses on the plane thank God they took his blood pressure 80/40 we landed in Az and he was admitted in the hospital for several days. They ran every test you can think of and put him on Lamictal. The doctor kept asking me had he had a recent brain injury like a car accident, which he had not also he said his brain looks like a 80 year old and my husband is 59 . The doctor also said it showed significant frontal lobe shrinkage. My husband eyes are also having some severe problems with visual fields. Has anyone experience this and when they compared his brain to a 80year old what does this mean for FTD/EOAD? I have never heard a doctor compare the brain in "age" terms
My husband has been put on KeppraXR 1000mg per day since he had th ambulatory EEG for 3 days it show that he is having multiple seizures throughout the day, he isnow saying it is petit mal seizures. The frontal lobe has shown seizure activity and the doc said that it may explain why on some days his memory is worse than others he also said he is declining. Is it true that the seizures normally come n the late stage of ALZ because my husband I would say is in stage 5 and seeing some symptoms of 6.
angelb, Actually, my husband's problems all started with absence seizures. He also takes Keppra & Lamictal. I ask the Neuro if he thought the seizures caused the FTD, he wasn't positive, but he thought the FTD is what caused the seizures. My husband also had ice pick headaches, that at times almost knocked him down..they only lasted a couple minutes, but were terrible. Thankfully, those are gone. He is in early stage 6.
Catherine, your husband sound like mine. He has FTD. He has been check three times for seizures but the EEG's were negative. I call his staring spells, his "mini mental vacations" He just stares off until something brings him back. This is a symptom of FTD. Good luck, let us know how he does.
Last night, normal night, nothing upsetting or unusual in the day, except that he was grumpy all day, said he had a headache, etc. As he was going to bed he seemed more confused than usual, said his arms hurt (pushing the walker). I managed to get him onto the bed and he started having a seizure - arms and head jerking, eyes rolled up. Lasted maybe 30 seconds. He hadn't had one for maybe nine or ten MONTHS.
I'd sortof half gotten his Depends on him and he peed out the side of it, though he'd just been on the toilet. I just left him alone for about ten minutes, covered him up, then went back and he was fine. Changed to fresh Depends and got his p.j.s on, was lucid when he talked, took his pills, etc. Lucid is a relative term here, of course.
Then, at 2:30 am, for the first time in maybe six months, he turned on the light over his bed and got up and came out of his room. I woke up and found him there; he said he had to go to the barber shop. Turned him around and he went back to bed, completely sweet, okay, okay. He's been drowsy but fine today. It's like a storm was brewing, came, and has now passed.
Briegull, did he (by chance) take a different drug. My husband had that reaction to Trazadone a year ago..and when we realize what was possibly causing it, we stopped the T. and he hasn't had a seizure since. Those seizures scare the bejeebies out of me. Just as you said, the next day, he was fine. Be sure you let his doc know..just for the record. Something causes these brain events...need to know what it is. whew!
He's doing fine on the Trazadone. In fact has had only this one since he started taking it. No change in other medication. We do see his neuro next week and I will mention it, of course.
My California son called today and when I told him about it he started talking about DELIRIUM and dementia. I don't think I've ever read anything about it before on our board or elsewhere but if you google it you will find some info. My husband wasn't delirious though; after he stopped twitching and jerking, and started urinating, he was conscious of it and said so. Perfectly normal reaction.