Epilepsy is a brain disorder where a person experiences chronic recurring seizures characterized by abnormal electrical activity in the brain, which can have detrimental physical and mental results, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. The Mayo Clinic adds notes that seizures are classified as partial, if the seizure is localized, or generalized, if the seizure involves both sides of the brain. Doctors then classify epileptic seizures into additional subtypes.
Simple Partial Seizures
Merck Manuals, an online medical library, reports that simple partial seizures are characterized by abnormal electrical activity that starts in one localized region of the brain, and spread throughout the brain. Thus, the symptoms of simple partial seizures affect the function that the particular region of the brain controls. During simple partial seizures, people remain conscious. The Mayo Clinic adds that the person may experience altered sensations such as vertigo, tingling and flashing lights.
Complex Partial Seizures
Complex partial seizures are characterized by abnormal electrical activity in the brain that can spread to other nearby areas, according to Merck Manuals. These seizures are often preceded by an aura of 1 to 2 minutes where the person may stare, chew their lips, move the limbs in a random manner, speak randomly and have trouble understanding others. During the seizure, the person may either shake uncontrollably or remain very still, and may lose consciousness.
Tonic-Clonic Seizure (Grand Mal)
A tonic-clonic seizure, also called a grand mal seizure, is a type of generalized seizure, which means it affects both hemispheres of the brain. The Mayo Clinic reports that people who have seizures of this type have the most severe form of epilepsy. People who have tonic-clonic seizures have complete loss of consciousness, the body stiffens and jerks uncontrollably, and they lose control of the bladder.
Absence Seizure
Absence seizures are another type of generalized seizure, but prove less severe than tonic-clonic seizures, according to the Mayo Clinic. People with epilepsy who have this type of seizure experience uncontrollable staring and body movements, though the movements don't include the rapid jerking movements of a tonic-clonic seizure.
Other Types of Generalized Seizures
According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, epileptic seizures can also fall into other classifications within the major generalized seizure classification. Atonic seizures most often affect children, and commonly include a loss of muscle tone. Sufferers of this type of seizure may fall to the ground potentially causing injury. People with simply tonic seizures have acute muscle contraction and loss of consciousness. Simply clonic seizures most often affect children, and causes muscle spasms without the characteristic stiffness of some other types of seizures. Myoclonic seizures cause brief contractions of muscles only in one muscle group, such as the facial muscles.
