Jacksonian Epileptic Seizure: What It Is, Symptoms, And How It Evolves
Epileptic seizures can be of many types, the most common being ending up on the ground shaking and losing consciousness. Even so, there is a specific type of crisis in which this does not happen: Jacksonian epileptic seizure.
These types of epileptic seizures can be so subtle that the person does not even realize that they are having a seizure, since sometimes they simply feel a kind of tingling and confusion rarely occurs.
Below we will look in more depth at this type of epileptic phenomenon, who first described it, the causes behind its occurrence, diagnosis and most common treatment.
Jacksonian seizures are a type of partial seizure with motor symptoms. Other names for this type of seizure are focal seizure, partial (focal) seizure, and temporal lobe seizure. They are characterized by first occurring in a very localized manner and subsequently transmitting the crisis to other places in the body..
The crisis usually spreads following the order of somatotopic representation of the area of the cerebral cortex that is affected, which has areas that are responsible for voluntary movements.
Normally, the crisis begins by affecting only a small part of the body, usually a finger or toe or the corners of the mouth. As the crisis progresses, the symptoms become more worrying, moving to other regions of the body.
What makes this type of epileptic seizure so characteristic is that there are generally no seizures. They are called “Jacksonian” because it was first discovered by the English neurologist John Jackson in 1870, a scientist who intensely studied brain structure and function.
In all epileptic seizures, abnormal electrical alterations occur at the cortical level.. Focal epileptic seizures occur when this activity occurs in a specific area of the brain. However, on many occasions, this activity moves to bordering areas of the affected region. This is called secondary generalization.
Partial epileptic seizures can be divided into two types. On the one hand we have simple crises, which would not affect consciousness or memory, and on the other hand we have complex crises, which do affect these two cognitive domains. Jacksonian epileptic seizures are included in simple seizures.
Causes
Partial epileptic seizures They are the most common type of attacks in people 12 months and older. In people over 65 years of age, who are more likely to suffer from cerebrovascular disease or brain tumors, these crises are also very common.
Among the main causes that may be behind a Jacksonian epileptic seizure is suffering from multiple sclerosis. Another cause behind this type of crisis is a lack of oxygen in the brain (hypoxia), having suffered a traumatic brain injury and injuries to the frontal lobe. They may also be due to atriovenous malformations.
Symptoms
There are two main symptoms that allow us to detect a Jacksonian epileptic seizure.. The first is that it is a simple partial seizure, and it only occurs in one part of the body. The second is that this crisis, as we have already mentioned, progresses through the body, starting with a small region and moving to the rest of the body.
Among the first symptoms that we can find we have weakness in one finger that subsequently moves to the rest of the hand in a few seconds.
People who suffer this type of crisis do not usually present serious damage. This is because this type of crisis is usually short and moderate, so mild that, sometimes, not even the person is aware that they have just suffered one. Another thing that is striking about this crisis is that, unlike most of them, there is no brief period of confusion after having suffered it.
Among the symptoms that we can find during the experience of a Jacksonian epileptic seizure we have:
Diagnosis
Electroencephalograms (EEG) are usually performed, to check the electrical activity of the patient’s brain. People with epileptic seizures show abnormal electrical activity in this test. This same test can show the specific area of the brain where the crisis begins. However, it may be difficult to detect the damaged lesion immediately after the seizure with this test.
Magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography can be used to study the specific case.. These neuroimaging techniques show where the Jacksonian seizure occurs in the brain. They also serve to see what are the possible causes behind abnormal brain activity.
Treatment
There are different therapeutic options that are applied to people who have suffered a Jacksonian epileptic seizure. Among the main ones is prescription of antiepileptic drugs, valproate, topiramate, vitamin B6, zonisamide, clobazam and carbamazepine. Even so, if you know exactly which area of the brain is experiencing the crisis, you can intervene surgically.
Another option is to improve the patient’s lifestyle, motivating them to adopt better eating habits and exercise more, as protection for future attacks.
