Abstract
Epilepsy is a common neurological disorder characterized by sudden brief attacks that may alter motor activity, consciousness, and sensory experiences. Convulsive seizures are the most common type of paroxysmal event, but any recurrent seizure pattern is considered “epileptic.” Many forms of epilepsy have been linked to viral, fungal, and parasitic infections of the central nervous system, known metabolic disturbances, the ingestion of toxic agents, brain lesions, tumors or congenital defects, or cerebral trauma. Although the direct causes are not always readily observable, with the advent of sophisticated histological, neuroimaging, and biochemical methods, it is now possible to diagnose the causes of seizure disorders that have, in the past, been difficult to identify. Because it can result from many different types of insults to the central nervous system, epilepsy is best thought of as a class of syndromes rather than a disease per se.
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Snyder, P.J., McConnell, H.W. (1997). Neuropsychological Aspects of Epilepsy in the Elderly. In: Nussbaum, P.D. (eds) Handbook of Neuropsychology and Aging. Critical Issues in Neuropsychology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-1857-4_18
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-1857-4_18
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