Epilepsy is a neurological disorder characterized by chronic seizures, specifically two or more episodes occurring without provocation. A seizure results from an abnormal, sudden and excessive hyperactivity of electrical brain activity. According to the Epilepsy Foundation, 70 percent of epilepsy causes remain unknown. Epilepsy can be classified into acute and remote depending on the time of onset and the reason for the seizure. The Epilepsy Foundation also states that with the exception of young children and the elderly, causes of this disorder are usually not identifiable.
Genetic Factors
You can inherit the genes for epilepsy if you have parents and siblings with epilepsy. However, it is not absolute that you will develop the disorder, as it just increases your risk and makes you more susceptible for certain conditions causing seizure activity, according to the Mayo Clinic. The University of Maryland Medical Center (UMM) says some cases of juvenile myoclonic epilepsy, representing 10 percent of all cases indeed stems from a genetic cause.
Head and Brain Injury
Head trauma, especially with open penetrating wounds, substantially increases the risk for epilepsy. According to the Epilepsy Foundation, a remote head injury that occurred in the past can cause epilepsy. Children at high risk for epilepsy from brain and head injury include newborns that went through a difficult delivery, experienced intracranial hemorrhage (bleeding into the brain), or brain-damaging oxygen deprivation during birth. Stroke and heart attack that injure circulation of the brain can lead to epilepsy in older adults.
Brain Abnormalities
According to the Mayo Clinic, 20 percent of epileptic episodes in children can be associated with cerebral palsy. On the opposite spectrum, dementia is the leading cause of epilepsy in the elderly. Developmental disorders such as Down's syndrome and autism can cause seizures as well. The UMM states that both benign and cancerous brain tumors are another cause, while numerous other internal structural abnormalities of the brain lead to epilepsy.
Other Causes
Diseases such as meningitis, viral encephalitis and AIDS can lead to development of epilepsy. Young children may experience febrile seizures from very high fevers to due illness or as a result of vaccination. UMM also lists alcohol abuse as a common cause of adolescent and adult-onset seizure activity.
