Difference between Simple Partials & Complex Partials

[brain]

NEUROLOGY CHANNEL - Understanding Epilepsy & Seizures


This website gives a better definition
of separation of Simple Partial & Complex Partial
Epilepsies...

Simple Partials:

Symptoms may be motor, sensory, psychic (states of consciousness), and/or autonomic (involuntary activity controlled by the autonomic nervous system). There is no impairment of consciousness in simple partial seizures.

Motor signs include the following:

* alternating contraction and relaxation of muscle groups
* eye movements and turning of the head to the same side
* asymmetrical posturing of the limbs
* speech arrest, vocalization

Sensory symptoms include the following:

* seeing flashes of lights or colors, illusions and hallucinations
* hearing humming, buzzing, hissing noises
* experiencing unpleasant odors and tastes
* dizziness, lightheadedness

Autonomic signs and symptoms include the following:

* borborygmi (rumbling noises produced by gas in the intestines)
* flushing
* incontinence
* nausea, vomiting
* piloerection (goose bumps)
* pupillary dilation
* sweating
* tachycardia (rapid heart rate)

Psychic symptoms include the following:

* detachment, depersonalization
* dreamy state
* memory distortion: flashback, deja vu (feeling that one has seen something before), deja entendu (feeling that one has heard something before), jamais vu (feeling that one has never seen something that is familiar), jamais entendu (feeling that one has never heard something that is familiar), panoramic vision (rapid recall of past events)
* time distortion
* unprovoked emotion: fear, pleasure, displeasure, depression, anger, elation, eroticism

Complex Partials:

Loss of consciousness distinguishes complex partial seizures from simple partial seizures. While unconscious, the patient may have "vacant" or "frightened" look and may have signs and symptoms of a simple partial seizure. Automatisms may occur during unconsciousness.

There are five types of automatisms:

* Alimentary: chewing, increased salivation, borborygmi (rumbling noises caused by gas in the intestines)
* Mimetic: facial expressions of fear, bewilderment, discomfort, tranquility, laughter, crying
* Gestural: repetitive movements of the hands, fingers, sexual gestures
* Ambulatory: wandering, running
* Verbal: repeated short phrases or swearing

Patients who have had complex partial seizures over a period of years may develop drop attacks. When this occurs, they lose postural tone and fall with the sudden onset of unconsciousness.

Complications—Complex partial seizures are easily triggered by emotional stress. The limbic structures (i.e., hypothalamus, hippocampus, amygdala) of the brain may be damaged by seizure activity. The limbic system is concerned with emotion and motivation.

These patients may develop cognitive and behavioral difficulties, such as the following:

* Interictal personality: humorlessness, dependence, obsessions, anger, hypo- or hypersexuality, emotionality
* Memory loss: short-term memory loss attributable to dysfunction in the hippocampus, anomia (inability to recall words or names of objects)
* Poriomania: prolonged aimless wandering followed by amnesia
* Violent behavior: aggression and defensiveness when subjected to restraint during a seizure

[Bernard]

Boy that is one ugly, ad heavy site.

[Bee91]

I heard somewhere that during a complex partial seizure your consiouness is impaired not completely lost....more like a dream


...do you know which is true?

[Nancy]

Bee -- I'm hardly the expert here (oh, good grief !!) but during what the "experts" have called a complex partial I have both had partial consciousness and been totally "gone".

When my seizures started I was always partially conscious ..... later that total gone-ness arrived. (I want to call it black-out, but my surroundings are not BLACK..... they are just just GONE.)

[brain]

LOL @ Bernard - I agree with the ADS
it's annoying as heck.

But at least the information is there.

--------------------------

I have Intractable Complex Partials with
secondary generalization.
I have no memory and I have loss of
consciousness.

I also have Simple Partials that can also
secondary generalize, and I have my memory
and consciousness during this; unless it had
generalized into something else - such as;
Tonic Clonic or Complex Partials - where I'll
loose consciousness.

[Bee91]

I usually can somewhat remember but my facts are all wrong. And other times I dont remember at all...
I dont know much about the kind of seizures I have...my doc says I have Tonic Clonic, Tonic, Absence, Complex partial, and simple partial...whatever...

Today was the first time I have ever had a simple partial seizure in a while (at least what I remember-no pun intended-)...and I know this sounds strange and insensitive but, I thought it was the funniest thing ever! Probably just because I could actually remember the entire seizure and it was just my right arm flopping around like a fish out of water...

[Bee91]

I talked to my doctor today. And I was actually lucky enough for him to get to witness two of my complex partial seizures!!! Finally!!

Somehow the subject of conciousness came up and he said that there are three possible levels of conciousness. Unconcious, Impaired, and concious. Yet they all can fall under the category of complex partial. I thought if you could completely remember it would be simple..Hmmm...did they change the rules on me?

[brain]

Yet they all can fall under the category of complex partial. I thought if you could completely remember it would be simple..Hmmm...did they change the rules on me?

There are no "rules" in Epilepsy unfortunately,
it's a real strange condition. But glad the neurologist
caught it all ~ and now you can be treated and
be more at ease.

The next thing the neurologist would do is come up
with a plan; and go from there. Just be patient.
It will not all work overnight, it all takes time,
including the titration of medication(s). The tests
and all.

But I'm glad it was all caught and you can now
move forward!

[Bee91]

yep...now he increased the Topamax and put me on Tegretol...and I have to take that three times a day...that's going to be a joy

[RobinN]

Did he suggest to move up real slow?
These weren't studied on 16 yr old teens.

[Bee91]

Im on 100 bid til friday then 200 bid til mond then 200 3X daily (sorry dont know the medical crap for that...)