Annual Course / From Then to Now: The Evolving Spectrum of Epilepsy Care

Heather Ravvin McKee1, Adriana Bermeo Ovalle2, Luciana Giambarberi3

  • 1Department of Neurology, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA.

Epilepsy Currents
|December 25, 2025
PubMed

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Epilepsy is a chronic neurological disease marked by recurrent, unpredictable seizures. These seizures are caused by abnormal electrical discharges in the brain, leading to behavior, sensation, or consciousness alterations. They can also cause transient impairment of awareness, interfering with daily activities.
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Epilepsy is primarily characterized by unpredictable seizures, either provoked by an identifiable factor, such as injury or illness, or unprovoked, occurring spontaneously without apparent cause.
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Antiepileptic drugs are specialized medications that prevent seizures in individuals diagnosed with epilepsy. These drugs primarily function by blocking the movement of sodium ions through channels in the neuronal membrane, inhibiting the repetitive firing of action potentials often associated with seizures.
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