What are non-epileptic events?
One reason that a patient may not be responding to epilepsy treatment is that he/she may be experiencing Non-epileptic events. Approximately 25% of the cases referred to epilepsy centers with the diagnosis of intractable epilepsy are Non-epileptic events. The term non-epileptic event represents a broad spectrum of behaviors, movement disorders, and psychological disturbances that can mimic a true epileptic seizure. Among the most common are seizures associated with psychological \ emotional difficulties, fainting spells, breathholding spells, gastrointestinal reflux, and disorders of movement. Unusual behavioral responses are often confused with true epilepsy, especially in infants. Common conditions such as gastro-intestinal reflux in the infant may result in spasm-like movements as they respond to the unpleasant sensation produced by the reflux of gastric acids. Psychological non-epileptic events are typically stress induced and can become chronic without timely diagnosis. Since the
