Listed below is statistical information provided by the Center for Disease Control, July 2009.
Epilepsy Fast Facts
- Epilepsy is a chronic neurological condition characterized by recurrent seizures.
- There are many types of seizures and their symptoms can vary from a momentary disruption of the senses, to short periods of unconsciousness or staring spells, to convulsions.
- Epilepsy can be caused by by many different conditions that affect a person’s brain. Often no definite cause can be found*. Epilepsy cannot be transmitted from person to person.
- Epilepsy affects about 2.5 million Americans.
- About 10% of people will experience a seizure sometime during their lifetime and about 3% will have had a diagnosis of epilepsy by age 80.
- In 2009, nearly 150,000 new cases of epilepsy will be diagnosed in the United States.
- Epilepsy results in an estimated annual cost of $15.5 billion in medical costs and lost or reduced earnings and production.
As you can see, you and your child are far from being alone in this journey! If you have a loved one with seizures, you definitely do not want any one else to go through this. However, it is somewhat comforting to have so many other people that can help.
* It is also important to know that seizures quite often are not related at all to a brain disorder. This is why I underlined the statement in the third bullet. Common practice is to test the brain when a person has a seizure. However, seizures are only the symptom of a greater problem. And that greater problem can virtually stem from anywhere else in the body.
For 4.5 years, doctors have continued to test our daughter's brain only to find nothing wrong. We've recently found that she has an imbalance in her pituitary gland. This issue was found by a Kinesiologist, not by a traditional Neurologist. You can refer to "Find the Right Doctor" to learn more about this.
