Patient #3

Danielle, Brooklyn & Jane

Background
Patient #3- A woman brings her 10-year-old son, Raymond, in to see you. Hes
been overly aggressive and angry lately, but she has attributed this to her
divorce from Raymonds father. Last night, Raymond attended a party at his
friends house. After a night of laser tag and little sleep, Raymond started
shaking and convulsing. He stopped before his mom arrived, but she still
wanted to get him checked out. Raymond does not really remember falling to
the floor, but he does remember that he smelled a very unpleasant odor right
before he went down.

Patient Symptoms

Overly aggressive and angry

Shaking
Convulsions
Unpleasant odor before falling
Memory loss

Diagnosis
Epilepsy- Epilepsy is a seizure disorder in which a person experiences abnormal

behavior, symptoms, and sensations, sometimes including loss of consciousness

during a seizure. Raymond experienced the characteristics of a generalized (grandmal) seizure. In this type of seizure, the patient has convulsions, loses consciousness
and usually collapses. The odor he smelled was urinary incontinence caused by
Raymonds muscle spasms. Abnormalities in the temporal or frontal lobes of the
brain could have accounted for the memory loss which is common in people with
epilepsy. Raymond also experienced anger issues, it is common to experience mood
changes just before, during, or after a seizure.

Errors and Prognosis

Nerve cells in the brain were damaged, which could have occurred due to a genetic
disorder or a brain injury. This lack of signaling or impaired signaling in the brain
causes seizures and other problems.

Life for this patient can be difficult without treatment. He will suffer from frequent
seizures and risk head injuries when these seizures occur.

If the patient decides to get treatment, he could possibly live a full life without suffering
from symptoms such as seizures, confusion, and involuntary muscle movement. Side
effects of medication may lead to complications, however.

This disorder is incurable but symptoms may be able to be controlled with medication.

This disorder is not necessarily terminal as patients can minimize the impacts of the
symptoms, however some patients have been killed by very intense seizures.

Visuals

Treatments
Epilepsy is usually treated by medications and in some cases by surgery,
devices, or dietary changes.
High-fat diets
Cell therapy
Gene therapy
Brain stimulation

Professional 1 - Neurologist

A neurologist is a professional that specializes in the brain as a whole. A neurologist can,

however, be specialized into multiple fields that specialize in specific brain damages/disorders
or brain therapies.

A neurologist may be able to:

o diagnose the patient as having epilepsy
o

describe what all may be wrong

work with the patient to discuss possible treatment options

provide the patient with recommendations on what to do.

Professional 2 - Epileptologist
An epileptologist is a specialized field of neurology that specifically studies the
disorder of epilepsy.
An epileptologist may be able to:
o help the patient cope with the complications associated with their brain disorder
o

provide the patient with different treatment options to help them minimize symptoms

explain the science behind what is happening/has happened in the patients brain

Help the patient understand and be educated in the disorder

Sources
http://www.webmd.com/epilepsy/guide/types-of-seizures-their-symptoms
https://www.epilepsysociety.org.uk/how-epilepsy-can-affect-memory#.WAYjo-grLIU
http://www.epilepsy.com/learn/impact/moods-and-behavior
http://www.healthline.com/health/long-term-prognosis-epilepsy
http://www.healthline.com/health/epilepsy
http://www.livescience.com/34723-epilepsy-symptoms-and-treatment.html