BACK TOTOP Browse A-ZSearchBrowse A-ZABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ0-9 E-mail FormEmail ResultsName:Email address:Recipients Name:Recipients address:Message: Print-FriendlyBookmarksbookmarks-menuPartial (focal) seizureFocal seizure; Jacksonian seizure; Seizure - partial (focal); Temporal lobe seizure; Epilepsy - partial seizuresAll seizures are caused by abnormal electrical disturbances in the brain. Partial (focal) seizures occur when this electrical activity remains in a limited area of the brain. The seizures can sometimes turn into generalized seizures, which affect the whole brain. This is called secondary generalization.Generalized seizuresGeneralized tonic-clonic seizure is a type of seizure that involves the entire body. It is also called grand mal seizure. The terms seizure, convul...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Partial seizures can be divided into:Simple, not affecting awareness or memory Complex, affecting awareness or memory of events before, during, and immediately after the seizure, and affecting behavior Causes Partial seizures are the most common type of seizure in people 1 year and older. In people older than 65 who have blood vessel disease of the brain or brain tumors, partial seizures are very common. Symptoms People with complex partial seizures may or may not remember any or all of the symptoms or events during the seizure.Depending on where in the brain the seizure starts, symptoms can include:Abnormal muscle contraction, such as abnormal head or limb movements Muscle contractionMuscle cramps are when a muscle gets tight (contracts) without you trying to tighten it, and it does not relax. Cramps may involve all or part of on...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Staring spells, sometimes with repetitive movements such as picking at clothes or lip smacking Eyes moving from side to side Abnormal sensations, such as numbness, tingling, crawling sensation (like ants crawling on the skin) NumbnessNumbness and tingling are abnormal sensations that can occur anywhere in your body, but they are often felt in your fingers, hands, feet, arms, or le...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Hallucinations, seeing, smelling, or sometimes hearing things that are not there HallucinationsHallucinations involve sensing things such as visions, sounds, or smells that seem real but are not. These things are created by the mind.Read Article Now Book Mark Article Abdominal pain or discomfort Nausea Sweating Flushed face Flushed faceSkin blushing or flushing is a sudden reddening of the face, neck, or upper chest due to increased blood flow.Read Article Now Book Mark Article Dilated pupils Rapid heart rate/pulseRapid heart rate/pulseA bounding pulse is a strong throbbing felt over one of the arteries in the body. It is due to a forceful heartbeat.ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Other symptoms may include:Blackout spells, periods of time lost from memory Changes in vision Changes in visionThere are many types of eye problems and vision disturbances, such as: Halos Blurred vision (the loss of sharpness of vision and the inability to see...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Sensation of déjà vu (feeling like current place and time have been experienced before) Changes in mood or emotion Changes in moodDepression may be described as feeling sad, blue, unhappy, miserable, or down in the dumps. Most of us feel this way at one time or another for shor...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Temporary inability to speak Exams and Tests The doctor will perform a physical exam. This will include a detailed look at the brain and nervous system.An EEG (electroencephalogram) will be done to check the electrical activity in the brain. People with seizures often have abnormal electrical activity seen on this test. In some cases, the test shows the area in the brain where the seizures start. The brain may appear normal after a seizure or between seizures.EEG (electroencephalogram)An electroencephalogram (EEG) is a test to measure the electrical activity of the brain.ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Blood tests may also be ordered to check for other health problems that may be causing the seizures.Head CT or MRI scan may be done to find the cause and location of the problem in the brain.CTA head computed tomography (CT) scan uses many x-rays to create pictures of the head, including the skull, brain, eye sockets, and sinuses.ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article MRIA head MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) is an imaging test that uses powerful magnets and radio waves to create pictures of the brain and surrounding...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Treatment Treatment for partial focal seizures includes medicines, changes in lifestyle for adults and children, such as activity and diet, and sometimes surgery. Your doctor can tell you more about these options.TreatmentEpilepsy is a brain disorder in which a person has repeated seizures over time. Seizures are episodes of uncontrolled and abnormal firing of brain c...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article AdultsYou have epilepsy. People with epilepsy have seizures. A seizure is a sudden brief change in the electrical and chemical activity in the brain. Aft...Read Article Now Book Mark Article ChildrenYour child has epilepsy. People with epilepsy have seizures. A seizure is a sudden brief change in the electrical and chemical activity in the brai...Read Article Now Book Mark Article Open ReferencesReferencesAbou-Khalil BW, Gallagher MJ, Macdonald RL. Epilepsies. In: Daroff RB, Jankovic J, Mazziotta JC, Pomeroy SL, eds. Bradley's Neurology in Clinical Practice. 7th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2016:chap 101.Kanner AM, Ashman E, Gloss D, et al. Practice guideline update summary: efficacy and tolerability of the new antiepileptic drugs I: treatment of new-onset epilepsy: Report of the Guideline Development, Dissemination, and Implementation Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology and the American Epilepsy Society. Neurology. 2018;91(2):74-81. PMID: 29898971 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29898971/.Wiebe S. The epilepsies. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 26th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 375.AllVideoImagesTogBrain - illustration The major areas of the brain have one or more specific functions.BrainillustrationBrain - illustration The major areas of the brain have one or more specific functions.BrainillustrationRelated Information Seizures(Symptoms)Generalized tonic-clonic seizure(Condition)Epilepsy(Condition)Aspiration pneumonia(Condition)Stroke(Condition)Epilepsy in adults - what to ask your doctor(Doctor Questions)Epilepsy in children - what to ask your doctor(Doctor Questions)Epilepsy(In-Depth)Pneumonia(In-Depth)Stroke(In-Depth) Review Date: 2/4/2020 Reviewed By: Amit M. Shelat, DO, FACP, FAAN, Attending Neurologist and Assistant Professor of Clinical Neurology, Stony Brook University School of Medicine, Stony Brook, NY. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team. 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Partial (focal) seizureFocal seizure; Jacksonian seizure; Seizure - partial (focal); Temporal lobe seizure; Epilepsy - partial seizuresAll seizures are caused by abnormal electrical disturbances in the brain. Partial (focal) seizures occur when this electrical activity remains in a limited area of the brain. The seizures can sometimes turn into generalized seizures, which affect the whole brain. This is called secondary generalization.Generalized seizuresGeneralized tonic-clonic seizure is a type of seizure that involves the entire body. It is also called grand mal seizure. The terms seizure, convul...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Partial seizures can be divided into:Simple, not affecting awareness or memory Complex, affecting awareness or memory of events before, during, and immediately after the seizure, and affecting behavior Causes Partial seizures are the most common type of seizure in people 1 year and older. In people older than 65 who have blood vessel disease of the brain or brain tumors, partial seizures are very common. Symptoms People with complex partial seizures may or may not remember any or all of the symptoms or events during the seizure.Depending on where in the brain the seizure starts, symptoms can include:Abnormal muscle contraction, such as abnormal head or limb movements Muscle contractionMuscle cramps are when a muscle gets tight (contracts) without you trying to tighten it, and it does not relax. Cramps may involve all or part of on...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Staring spells, sometimes with repetitive movements such as picking at clothes or lip smacking Eyes moving from side to side Abnormal sensations, such as numbness, tingling, crawling sensation (like ants crawling on the skin) NumbnessNumbness and tingling are abnormal sensations that can occur anywhere in your body, but they are often felt in your fingers, hands, feet, arms, or le...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Hallucinations, seeing, smelling, or sometimes hearing things that are not there HallucinationsHallucinations involve sensing things such as visions, sounds, or smells that seem real but are not. These things are created by the mind.Read Article Now Book Mark Article Abdominal pain or discomfort Nausea Sweating Flushed face Flushed faceSkin blushing or flushing is a sudden reddening of the face, neck, or upper chest due to increased blood flow.Read Article Now Book Mark Article Dilated pupils Rapid heart rate/pulseRapid heart rate/pulseA bounding pulse is a strong throbbing felt over one of the arteries in the body. It is due to a forceful heartbeat.ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Other symptoms may include:Blackout spells, periods of time lost from memory Changes in vision Changes in visionThere are many types of eye problems and vision disturbances, such as: Halos Blurred vision (the loss of sharpness of vision and the inability to see...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Sensation of déjà vu (feeling like current place and time have been experienced before) Changes in mood or emotion Changes in moodDepression may be described as feeling sad, blue, unhappy, miserable, or down in the dumps. Most of us feel this way at one time or another for shor...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Temporary inability to speak Exams and Tests The doctor will perform a physical exam. This will include a detailed look at the brain and nervous system.An EEG (electroencephalogram) will be done to check the electrical activity in the brain. People with seizures often have abnormal electrical activity seen on this test. In some cases, the test shows the area in the brain where the seizures start. The brain may appear normal after a seizure or between seizures.EEG (electroencephalogram)An electroencephalogram (EEG) is a test to measure the electrical activity of the brain.ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Blood tests may also be ordered to check for other health problems that may be causing the seizures.Head CT or MRI scan may be done to find the cause and location of the problem in the brain.CTA head computed tomography (CT) scan uses many x-rays to create pictures of the head, including the skull, brain, eye sockets, and sinuses.ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article MRIA head MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) is an imaging test that uses powerful magnets and radio waves to create pictures of the brain and surrounding...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article Treatment Treatment for partial focal seizures includes medicines, changes in lifestyle for adults and children, such as activity and diet, and sometimes surgery. Your doctor can tell you more about these options.TreatmentEpilepsy is a brain disorder in which a person has repeated seizures over time. Seizures are episodes of uncontrolled and abnormal firing of brain c...ImageRead Article Now Book Mark Article AdultsYou have epilepsy. People with epilepsy have seizures. A seizure is a sudden brief change in the electrical and chemical activity in the brain. Aft...Read Article Now Book Mark Article ChildrenYour child has epilepsy. People with epilepsy have seizures. A seizure is a sudden brief change in the electrical and chemical activity in the brai...Read Article Now Book Mark Article Open ReferencesReferencesAbou-Khalil BW, Gallagher MJ, Macdonald RL. Epilepsies. In: Daroff RB, Jankovic J, Mazziotta JC, Pomeroy SL, eds. Bradley's Neurology in Clinical Practice. 7th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2016:chap 101.Kanner AM, Ashman E, Gloss D, et al. Practice guideline update summary: efficacy and tolerability of the new antiepileptic drugs I: treatment of new-onset epilepsy: Report of the Guideline Development, Dissemination, and Implementation Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology and the American Epilepsy Society. Neurology. 2018;91(2):74-81. PMID: 29898971 pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29898971/.Wiebe S. The epilepsies. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 26th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 375.
