Childhood, from the day we are born, is shaped by rapid brain development. In this rapid development process, many disease tables related to the brain can be encountered.
Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological diseases in childhood. Epilepsy is diagnosed both by the way the seizure occurs and as a result of the tests performed. However, from infancy to adulthood, in many non-epileptic disorders, our children are mistakenly diagnosed with epilepsy and may be exposed to unnecessary treatments for many years.
Among these diseases that are confused with epilepsy, involuntary arm and leg movements seen in sleep during infancy, trembling attacks seen in the body, or stiffening and becoming rigid while crying can be counted. In the play childhood and adolescence period, some types of fainting, tic disorder, sleep disorders such as sleepwalking and night terror, dizziness and involuntary contractions can also be diagnosed with epilepsy in disorders that can actually pass without treatment in the developmental process of our child.
In these epilepsy-like situations that can be seen from infancy to adulthood, it is not appropriate to diagnose epilepsy without being sure with a detailed neurological evaluation and electroencephalography (EEG) examination. Both the psychological pressure that the diagnosis of epilepsy creates on families and our children, and the negativities that the drugs used can create in our body are important. For this reason, if epilepsy is suspected in our children, pediatric neurology physicians should definitely be consulted, and a decision should be made on the diagnosis of epilepsy after a detailed examination and necessary tests are performed.
