Ambulatory EEG

[Ocala Mike]

Meant to post this here, but it wound up in "The Kitchen" instead.

Hi! I posted earlier in a thread titled "Newbie" about my wife's recent history of seizures. Yesterday, she had a long consultation appointment at the Neurology Clinic of the University of Florida (Shands) Hospital. After taking her history, the doc decided that she will have an ambulatory eeg done over a period of several days in the hopes of "capturing" one of her seizures which so far only happen at work.

I guess our questions are, how does this work? Is this something that fits over her head and can be covered with a ball cap or a kerchief or something? They indicated that we will have to travel back to the hospital to have the data "downloaded" in order to accomplish the next day's test. I presume I will be doing this each evening (75-mile round trip) for her for several days, as she is no longer allowed to drive.

Finally, my wife also suffers from diabetes, and is poorly controlled with lots of recent severe hypoglycemic episodes unrelated to the seizures. Does anyone have any input on whether her history of hypoglycemic (insulin shock) episodes could be a contributing factor in a 65-year old otherwise healthy woman presenting with mild seizures all of a sudden? How about hyperglycemia, where her blood sugar goes sky high for a while? I fear that years of being "brittle" are now causing this payback, although I haven't heard that from a doctor yet.


Ocala Mike

 

[Nakamova]

Hi Ocala Mike, you might want to check out this thread:

http://www.coping-with-epilepsy.com/forums/f23/ambulatory-eeg-10060/

You should also be able to call up your wife's neurologist with amy questions or concerns about the Ambulatory EEG -- it's their job to make sure your informed and comfortable with the procedure.

Hypoglycemia/low blood sugar can definitely trigger seizures -- it's a trigger for me. It's definitely worth asking the doctor about, and in the absence of other causes, seems to be a likely suspect. Have you kept a record of when her seizures occur? Do they occur at a particular time relative to her glucose levels?

 

[Cint]

Hi Ocala Mike,

Here is a great website explaining AmbulatoryEEG:

http://www.epilepsy.com/EPILEPSY/EEG_AMBULATORY

I also have Type 1 Diabetes and so far hypoglycemia hasn't triggered a seizure for me, although,it could for your wife, depending on how low it is. I get that tingling feeling in my mouth and shakiness, clumsiness, confusion feeling, lightheaded. How often does she check her glucose levels? And how often does she have her A1c levels checked? How high does her hyperglycemia get?

And here is some info from the American Diabetes Association:
http://www.diabetes.org

When blood glucose is too low, it means your body has too much insulin relative to the amount of glucose. This is called hypoglycemia and it can make you feel and act weird. Different people feel a range of symptoms when their blood glucose starts to go low. Some people may not have any signs at all.

Some common signs are:

Shakiness
Dizziness
Nervousness
Sweating a lot
Hunger
Headache
Pale face
Feelings of anger, sadness, or crankiness for no reason
Feelings of stubbornness or an urge to pick a fight
Clumsiness
Feeling confused and can't pay attention
Tingling feeling around your mouth
Passing out (fainting)
Seizure

 

[Connie Tech]

Some ambulatory machines will record 3 days at a time--see from your doc if there is a hospital in the area (or you can call) who can do this for you. At the hospital I am at, we call the patient 1-2 times each 24hrs to see if all electrodes are on and to walk them thru the battery changes.

For the ambulatory--multiple electrodes will be glued to her head. At my facility, we gauze wrap the head, therefore allowing the patient to wear a hat during the recording time. We can record up to 3 dyas without seeing the patient unless absolutely necessary. Our process also states, if 2 typical events are recorded, the study is discontinued at that time, regardless of how long it's ordered for. Most or ordered to capture typical events, not necessarly look for abnoraml EEG.

Your neurologist may pick a certain place because they read studies at that facility. You can stick to your guns and go to a place convenient for you.

There are hypoglycemic events which are not seizures and there are folks with fluctuating diabetes who have seizures when the levels are out of whack. If she did NOT have a routine EEG, it's possbile your insurance may not cover the multi day ambulatory..check it out first. You might have other options.

Good luck to you and your family.