Advanced Comprehensive Epilepsy Centre

Understanding Epilepsy

Epilepsy, a neurological disease characterized by a propensity to develop recurrent unprovoked seizures, affects people of all demographics, with an estimated 50 million globally out of which 10 million individuals reside in India. Seizures can be triggered by various factors, including high fever, low blood sugar, alcohol or drug withdrawal, or head injuries disrupting brain functions. While the specific cause of epilepsy may remain elusive in a minority of patients, epilepsy can result from a brain tumour, stroke, or peripartum insult and traumatic brain injury.

Epileptic seizures can manifest with varied symptoms based on the localization and propagation of the electrical disturbance in the brain. Common symptoms during seizures include transient confusion, staring, muscle rigidity, uncontrollable jerking movements of the arms and legs, loss of consciousness, and psychological manifestations such as fear, anxiety, or déjà vu. The most overt manifestations occur with falls, tonic and clonic convulsions with tongue bite and urinary incontinence, and unconsciousness lasting for several minutes.

Comorbidities Associated with Epilepsy

In addition to recurrent seizures, epilepsy is associated with an array of comorbidities such as psychological disturbances (anxiety and depression), cognitive disturbances (memory decline and poor scholastic performance), sleep disorders (insomnia and daytime sleepiness), sexual dysfunction, medication side effects and cardiovascular diseases and premature death. Above all, epilepsy is a highly stigmatizing disease. Women with epilepsy find it difficult to get married, and both males and females with epilepsy are more often unemployed or underemployed. All these adversely affect the quality of life of people with epilepsy.

In nearly one-third of the people with epilepsy, the seizures continue despite multiple trials of antiseizure medicines (drug-resistant epilepsy). These patients have all aspects of their life severely affected because of the recurrent seizure. Furthermore, they are prone for SUDEP (sudden unexpected death in epilepsy). A proportion of patients with drug-resistant epilepsy can benefit from surgery, dietary modification (ketogenic diet) or by neuromodulation.

The Multidisciplinary Approach at KIMS HEALTH

It is quite evident that people with epilepsy require a multispecialty team with neurologist with special training in epilepsy (epileptologist), a psychologist, a psychiatrist, a medico-social worker, a neuroradiologist, a neurosurgeon, an occupational therapist, a dietician and neurotechnologist working together to provide a comprehensive evaluation and management.

Services Offered

The Comprehensive Epilepsy Program of KIMSHEALTH, Trivandrum is being developed with this objective, and will offer the following services:

Diagnostic services:

Epilepsy Monitoring Unit (EMU): Equipped to perform short and long-term video-EEG monitoring for distinguishing between epileptic and non-epileptic events, provide epilepsy syndromic diagnosis, and presurgical evaluation.

Neuroradiology: MRI with epilepsy protocol and soon to be installed high resolution (3T) MRI.

Detailed psychological, psychiatric, speech and language, and occupational evaluation.

Treatment services:

In addition to medical, surgical treatments, dietary, and neuromodulatory treatments, we will provide comprehensive support, including medical, educational, psychosocial, and occupational assistance for individuals of all ages.

At the Advanced Comprehensive Epilepsy Centre, we are committed to ensuring that individuals living with epilepsy receive the best possible care and support to enhance their quality of life.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, please reach out to us at the Advanced Comprehensive Epilepsy Centre at KIMSHEALTH.