Treating Epilepsy: From Drug ... Video Transcript

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Once they have the surgery, the bad part of the brain is removed and the effects of the seizures, which were affecting the entire brain, and the drugs which were affecting the entire brain, are gone. So they can actually be substantially better after surgery.

DAVID FOLK THOMAS: We're almost out of time. So just toclose, what about lifestyle changes? Can you ever control seizures without the medication, without the surgery?

CARL W. BAZIL, MD, PhD: Interesting and controversial question. There are a lot of things that increase your risk of seizures, and the simple ones are sleep deprivation and alcohol. That's what people always worry about. But that's not the only thing that causes a seizure.

In general, people with epilepsy need to be, maybe, a little bit more careful about their lifestyle, try to get enough sleep, try not to drink too much alcohol or, certainly, take recreational drugs. But they shouldn't need to change their lifestyle tremendously, and that's really the goal of our treatment. They should be able to live a normal live.

DAVID FOLK THOMAS: Sue, the final word.

SUSAN T. HERMAN, MD: What we usually ask is that our patients follow simple, common sense safety measures. So if they have frequent seizures, not to go swimming alone in the ocean, but only in a pool with somebody supervising them. Or not to ride a bicycle in traffic, buton quiet streets. Things that are pretty common sense, to keep them from injuring themselves if they should have a seizure. But this is usually just for patients who have very frequent seizures. If someone has infrequent seizures, those changes may not even be necessary.

DAVID FOLK THOMAS: Okay, that's all the time we have for our topic, epilepsy, and the treatment of epilepsy. I want to thank my guests,Dr. Carl Bazil, and Dr. Sue Herman. I'm David Folk Thomas. We'll see you next time.

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