Partial Seizures

Partial seizures begin in just one part of the brain. This is the most common seizure type. There are 2 types:

• Simple partial seizures may cause unusual feelings or sensations that can take many forms, such as sudden, unexplained feelings of joy, anger, sadness, or nausea. It's not uncommon to hear, smell, taste, see or feel things that are not real. During simple partial seizures, patients remain alert and aware. These seizures usually last just a few seconds.
• Complex partial seizures cause a change in or loss of consciousness. Altered consciousness can produce a dreamlike experience. Strange, repetitious behaviors such as blinks, twitches, mouth movements, or even walking in a circle occur. Throwing objects or striking walls or furniture, as if in anger or fear, may also occur. These seizures usually last just 1 or 2 minutes.

Symptoms of partial seizures can be mistaken for other disorders. For example, dreamlike perceptions of partial seizures may be mistaken for migraine, which also can cause a dreamlike state. However, the progression of symptoms tends to be the same or similar in each person, every time.

Generalized Seizures

These seizures affect areas of both sides of the brain, usually with loss of consciousness. There are 4 types:

• Tonic-clonic seizures (formerly called grand mal) cause the person to cry out, stiffen, and fall. Shaking and tongue-biting is common.
• Absence seizures (formerly called petit mal) cause staring, blinking, or twitching. They occur mainly in children, who are often mistaken to be daydreaming.
• Atonic seizures (formerly called drop attacks) cause sudden loss of muscle tone. This type of seizure can literally cause a person to drop to the ground.
• Myoclonic seizures cause limbs to jerk suddenly, and often happen just after waking.

Defining seizure type can sometimes be difficult. Seizure patterns can change, and some people experience more than one type of seizure, with no clear pattern.