Elaine H
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To all you Brits out there, you will have heard that David Cameron (leader of the Conservative Party) has just lost his little 5 year old son. He had a very rare form of epilepsy called Ohtahara Syndrome, which has simliar traits to Cerebral Palsy. I have to admit, I hadn't even in my four years of studying epilepsy, come across this condition, and I just wanted to bring your attention to it.
It is a very rare form of eplilepsy affecting boys more than girls. It affects newborns, usually within the first 3 months of life, most often within the first 10 days, and takes the form of seizures.The condition is most commonly caused by metabolic disorders, or structural damage in the brain, although the cause can't always be determined. Most infants show underdevelopment of part or all of the cerebral hemispheres. EEG's of infants with Ohtahara Syndrome show a high voltage spike wave discharge followed by little activity, this is known as "burst suppression" Sadly, it is a very progresive condition, with the seizures getting worse, this little boy had Cerebral Palsy aswell, and lived to be 6, although from what I can gather from the press, the Camerons weren't expecting he would live to be very much older.
I just wanted to bring it to your attention, as I had never heard of it before, and the word epilepsy has been on the national news, and in the papers which as sad as it is, will only be good for bringing people's attention to all the different facets of the condition, the people it affects, and how it affects us!
I hope you will go on to explain this to all your friends and family too, God bless the Cameron's, and my thoughts are with them at this difficult time!
Best Regards
Elaine x
It is a very rare form of eplilepsy affecting boys more than girls. It affects newborns, usually within the first 3 months of life, most often within the first 10 days, and takes the form of seizures.The condition is most commonly caused by metabolic disorders, or structural damage in the brain, although the cause can't always be determined. Most infants show underdevelopment of part or all of the cerebral hemispheres. EEG's of infants with Ohtahara Syndrome show a high voltage spike wave discharge followed by little activity, this is known as "burst suppression" Sadly, it is a very progresive condition, with the seizures getting worse, this little boy had Cerebral Palsy aswell, and lived to be 6, although from what I can gather from the press, the Camerons weren't expecting he would live to be very much older.
I just wanted to bring it to your attention, as I had never heard of it before, and the word epilepsy has been on the national news, and in the papers which as sad as it is, will only be good for bringing people's attention to all the different facets of the condition, the people it affects, and how it affects us!
I hope you will go on to explain this to all your friends and family too, God bless the Cameron's, and my thoughts are with them at this difficult time!
Best Regards
Elaine x
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