| epilepsy, absence | Epileptic seizures that consist of a sudden cessation of ongoing conscious activity without convulsive muscular activity or loss of postural control. These seizures may be so brief as to be inapparent, lasting seconds and occasionally several minutes. Absence seizures usually begin in otherwise neurologically normal children and rarely appear for the first time in adults. The seizures may occur hundreds of times per day and go on for weeks or months before it is recognised that a child is having seizures. (12 Dec 1998) |
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| childhood absence epilepsy | A generalised epilepsy syndrome characterised by the onset of absence seizures in childhood, typically at age six or seven years. There is a strong genetic predisposition and girls are affected more often than boys. EEG reveals generalised 3 Hz spike-wave activity on a normal background. Prognosis for remission is good if the patient does not also have generalised tonic-clonic seizures. See: absence. Synonym: petit mal epilepsy, pyknolepsy. (05 Mar 2000) |
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| juvenile absence epilepsy | A generalised epilepsy syndrome with onset around puberty, characterised by absence seizures and generalised tonic-clonic seizures. EEG often shows a greater than 3 Hz generalised spike wave pattern. (05 Mar 2000) |
| absence | Paroxysmal attacks of impaired consciousness, occasionally accompanied by spasm or twitching of cephalic muscles, which usually can be brought on by hyperventilation; depending on the type and severity of the absence, the EEG may show an abrupt onset of a 3/sec spike and wave pattern as in simple absence, or in atypical cases, a 4/sec spike and wave or faster spike complexes. The clinical states accompanying these EEG abnormalities may be classified as: 1) absence with no overt manifestations, e.g., simple absence; epileptic absence; subclinical absence; 2) absence with clonic movements, e.g., myoclonic absence; 3) absence with atonic states, e.g., atonic absence; 4) absence with tonic contractions, e.g., hypertonic muscular contraction; 5) absence with automatisms, e.g., various stereotyped movements, usually of the face or hands; 6) absence with atypical features, e.g., bizarre motor activity. Origin: L. Absentia (05 Mar 2000) |
| absence seizure | <neurology> A type of seizure that in contrast to the grand mal seizure, are noted for their brevity and for the degree of loss of awareness (brief staring spell) accompanied by minimal motor manifestations. A common form of childhood epilepsy. (06 Oct 1997) |
| atypical absence seizure | An absence seizure associated with an EEG pattern of irregular or slow spike and wave at less than 2.5 Hz or paroxysmal fast activity on an abnormally slow background EEG. (05 Mar 2000) |
| congenital absence of pulmonary valve | <radiology> BIG central pulmonary arteries, big RV (12 Dec 1998) |
| pure absence | A brief clouding of consciousness accompanied by the abrupt onset of 3/sec spikes and waves on EEG. Synonym: pure absence. (05 Mar 2000) |
| simple absence | A brief clouding of consciousness accompanied by the abrupt onset of 3/sec spikes and waves on EEG. Synonym: pure absence. (05 Mar 2000) |
| anosognosic epilepsy | Epilepsy characterised by attacks of which the person is unaware. Synonym: anosognosic seizures. (05 Mar 2000) |
| automatic epilepsy | <neurology> Seizures with elaborate and multiple sensory, motor, and/or psychic components. A common feature is the clouding of consciousness and amnesia for the event. Some clinical manifestations may include more complex behaviours like burst of anger, emotional outbursts, fear or automatisms. The EEG often reveals spike discharges in the temporal lobe during sleep. (02 Jan 1998) |
| autonomic epilepsy | Episodes of autonomic dysfunction presumably due to diencephalic irritation. Synonym: diencephalic epilepsy, vasomotor epilepsy, vasovagal epilepsy. (05 Mar 2000) |
| benign childhood epilepsy with centrotemporal spikes | A specific epilepsy syndrome beginning in childhood and remitting in adolescence, characterised by nocturnal simple partial motor seizures or generalised tonic-clonic seizures. EEG shows centrotemporal spikes that are activated by sleep and an otherwise normal EEG background. (05 Mar 2000) |
| major epilepsy | tonic-clonic seizure |
| vasomotor epilepsy | Episodes of autonomic dysfunction presumably due to diencephalic irritation. Synonym: diencephalic epilepsy, vasomotor epilepsy, vasovagal epilepsy. (05 Mar 2000) |
| vasovagal epilepsy | Episodes of autonomic dysfunction presumably due to diencephalic irritation. Synonym: diencephalic epilepsy, vasomotor epilepsy, vasovagal epilepsy. (05 Mar 2000) |