Epilepsy KZN

01/07/2024

The journey to seizure freedom is multifaceted 🔄
With the advanced capabilities of an Epilepsy Monitoring Unit and multidisciplinary team, we can make significant strides towards accurate diagnosis, effective treatment and improved quality of life for those living with epilepsy💜

09/10/2023

Summer in South Africa goes hand in hand with ☀️ 🏖️ and 💦

Chat to your neurologist for advice about water safety specific to your (or your child’s) epilepsy and equip yourself with knowledge to make sure you have the most fun in the safest way possible😎

13/06/2023

What is the difference between a prolonged EEG and epilepsy monitoring in a comprehensive unit? 🤷🏻‍♀️

Visiting an Epilepsy Monitoring Unit (EMU) for 3-7 days can help in many ways.

Diagnostic Classification: It is possible to definitively determine whether you have epilepsy or not. Furthermore, diagnose the type of epilepsy or seizures you are experiencing and potentially classify a specific syndrome (more so in paediatric cases).

Quantification: Determining the number of seizures occurring within a 24hour period or over the duration of your stay is helpful, as some may pass unnoticed. This is also a beautiful comparative tool to see the drastic reduction in seizures or abnormal brain activity after specific medication changes or additions during your stay.

Trigger Identification: Different epilepsies have different triggers. This can make a dramatic change to quality of life when you know specifically what your trigger is. REMEMBER! Only 3 percent of people have photosensitive epilepsy.

Medication Adjustment: This is a safe and controlled environment to withdraw, change or add medications depending on the information we are needing to obtain throughout your stay.

Epilepsy Surgery: The first step is determining whether you are a candidate for epilepsy surgery (should your epilepsy be resistant to medication). Once this is confirmed, we use multiple tools and testing to determine the exact location of where the seizures are coming from for the surgeon to plan the procedure.

05/06/2023

Understanding pharmaceutical terms is imperative for the effective treatment of all medical conditions💊

Here is a basic little “cheat sheet” for you to refer back to, when things are a little overwhelming and confusing👆🏻

31/05/2023

Facing the diagnosis of a chronic illness is daunting, overwhelming and out right petrifying at times. Your medical team are here to walk this journey with and alongside you. Working closely together makes room for the most promising and hopeful outcomes 💜

22/05/2023

Neuroimaging is a vital component in the work up of any neurological illness. Multiple neuroimaging techniques exist with different purposes in diagnostics. Sometimes it is necessary to make use of more than one imaging technique to get a full understanding of the problem. 🧠

Here is an analogy to help you: 🏎️
A car (brain) may look perfect on a photograph (CT/MRI), but the car doesn’t start. This is when more tests (imaging) are needed, to see how the parts and systems inside the car are working (blood flow, metabolism, electrical brain activity).

Your neurologist will put all the tests, imaging and clinical history together like puzzle pieces to get a comprehensive picture of the illness. So instead of just a photograph, we now have a virtual reality experience of the car (brain)! Not quite… but maybe one day😉

11/05/2023

There are many myths about epilepsy that need to be busted, let’s start with this one 👊🏻

08/05/2023

Epilepsy is far more common than most people realise 🧠

Keep yourself well read, educated and open to knowledge about chronic illness and the implications it has on people, families and health care systems.

11/04/2023

Exciting things happening in the world of epilepsy surgery in South Africa 🇿🇦💜😎

Head to online or our page for the link to the full article🧠

11/04/2023

Exciting happenings in the world of epilepsy and epilepsy surgery in South Africa 😃🇿🇦💜

Peter Olivier has become the first South African with epilepsy to undergo life-altering deep brain stimulation surgery.

08/04/2023

Join .southafrica for their free webinar series sponsored by 💜
link to register in bio 👉🏻