A great many people have the mistaken notion that epilepsy is a disease that most often is found in children and younger people. Contrary to popular belief, however, epilepsy actually occurs most frequently among seniors, with each decade after 60 showing evidence of many more cases of epilepsy.

In this article, we’ll discuss some of the causes and changes brought about by epilepsy in senior citizens, and what to do about them when they do occur. Since November is Epilepsy Awareness Month, this is a great time to give some consideration to senior citizen epilepsy, and the telltale signs to look for in your elderly loved one.

Causes of late-onset epilepsy (LOE)

In some cases, senior citizen epilepsy is caused by neurodegenerative diseases, and strokes can also bring on recurrent episodes of epilepsy. However, approximately 50% of all senior citizen epilepsy cases have no known causes. A number of surveys have been conducted to try to increase the knowledge base about late-onset epilepsy, and attempts have been made to determine if there is any association with hypertension, dementia, stroke, diabetes, or even smoking as a habit.

During the course of some of these studies, it was determined that some preventive measures, such as increased levels of physical activity, can discourage the onset of epilepsy. It has been determined that diabetes, hypertension, stroke, and smoking are at least risk factors for developing late-onset epilepsy, even if they are not legitimate causes of the disease.

Symptoms to look for

Given the fact that epilepsy is attributable to abnormal brain activity, seizures can impact any of the thousands of processes that are coordinated by the brain. Some of the symptoms that are most obvious in elderly people are the following:

• temporary disorientation or confusion
• psychological symptoms such as anxiety, paranoia, or outright fear
• temporary loss of awareness or consciousness
• uncontrollable arm and leg movements, often characterized by jerky motions
• muscles that tend to get stiff for long periods of time
• staring spells that have no apparent reason or cause

Some of the symptoms can vary a great deal, depending on the type of epileptic seizure which might be occurring. Generally, a person who has epilepsy will have the same kind of seizure each time, so you’ll begin to notice a pattern of symptoms that are the same for each episode. Doctors classify epileptic seizures as either focal or generalized, and these two types are based on where and how any abnormal brain activity actually gets generated.

Focal seizures

When senior citizens have epileptic seizures, they can result from abnormal activity in a single area of the brain, and in that case, they are referred to as focal seizures. These types of seizures can be either seizures with impaired awareness or those without loss of consciousness. You might observe a senior having a focal seizure without loss of consciousness, in which case it might be characterized by involuntary jerking of body parts.

Focal seizures with impaired awareness generally involve a loss of awareness or consciousness. To a senior, this event might seem something like being in a dream. To an observer, an elderly person suffering from this kind of seizure might stare off into space and be unable to respond normally to their surroundings. You might also observe them performing such repetitive movements as chewing, swallowing, rubbing their hands, or walking aimlessly in circles.

Generalized seizures

When seizures occur which affect all areas of the brain, they are called generalized seizures, and there are six different types of these generalized procedures:

• Tonic-clonic seizures – formerly known as grand mal seizures, are dramatic episodes characterized by loss of consciousness, twitching, shaking, tongue biting, and loss of bladder control.
• Myoclonic seizures – generally appear as sudden body jerks affecting the arms and legs.
• Clonic seizures – clonic seizures are often characterized by jerky muscle movements affecting the face, arms, and neck.
• Atonic seizures – sometimes known as drop seizures, these episodes lead to a loss of muscle control, often in the area of the legs.
• Tonic seizures – these result in stiff muscles and might cause a loss of consciousness. This type of seizure also affects the legs, arms, and back area muscles, potentially causing the victim to fall.
• Absence seizures – once known as petit mal seizures, these generally occur in children. They’re characterized by staring off into space or subtle body movements such as lip-smacking or eye-blinking.

When should you take your senior to a doctor?

It’s a good idea to be safe rather than sorry, so when you observe any of the following symptoms, you should take your elderly loved one to see a doctor. The sooner that epilepsy is diagnosed, the sooner that some kind of effective treatment can be recommended and your loved one can be protected from harm.

• the senior person is diabetic
• high fever is present in your loved one
• an observed seizure lasts longer than five minutes
• after a seizure ends, a second one begins very quickly
• the senior becomes injured during a seizure
• the elderly person continues to have seizures even though they are taking anti-seizure medication.

If you observe any of these symptoms in your elderly loved one, you should get them to a doctor as soon as possible, so formal treatment can begin to help control the situation.