What is epilepsy?
Epilepsy is a condition that affects the brain. It involves 'disturbances' to the normal functioning of neurons (the nerve cells) in the brain which can cause seizures (or fits). Although epilepsy can start at any age, most cases will start during childhood.
Not all seizures are epileptic. For example, febrile convulsions can happen when a child is ill and has a fever or their body temperature rises quickly. A child who has a febrile convulsion does not usually have epilepsy.
What causes epilepsy?
In most cases the reason why a child develops epilepsy is unknown - this is caused idiopathic epilepsy. But some children may develop epilepsy because their brain has been injured in some way - this can happen if the child has a serious head injury, or may be because of an illness such as meningitis. Epilepsy may also be associated with metabolic or genetic disorders. When there is a known cause for a child's epilepsy, it is called symptomatic epilepsy.
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