More than 3 million people in the U.S. have some form of epilepsy. About 200,000 new cases of seizure disorders and epilepsy are diagnosed each year. Epilepsy is a medical condition that produces seizures affecting a variety of mental and physical functions. It’s also called a seizure disorder. When a person has two or more seizures, they are considered to have epilepsy.

A seizure happens when a brief, strong surge of electrical activity affects part or all of the brain. One in 10 adults will have a seizure sometime during their life.

Seizures can last from a few seconds to a few minutes. They can have many symptoms, from convulsions and loss of consciousness to some that are not always recognized as seizures by the person experiencing them or by health care professionals: blank staring, lip smacking, or jerking movements of arms and legs.

There are many different types of seizures. The kind of seizure a person has depends on which part and how much of the brain is affected by the electrical disturbance that produces seizures.

Neurologists utilize a variety of techniques to diagnose epilepsy. Your primary care physician can request a comprehensive neurological evaluation by contacting the Neurodiagnostic Center at Winchester Medical Center at 540-536-8287.

Virginia Comprehensive Epilepsy Program
The Virginia Comprehensive Epilepsy Program is a collaboration of Winchester Medical Center and two Winchester, Virginia based physician practices, Winchester Neurological Consultants, Inc., and Virginia Brain and Spine Center, Inc.

The founders of the program, epileptologist Paul Lyons, MD (Winchester Neurological Consultants, Inc) and neurosurgeon Lee Selznick, MD (Virginia and Spine Center, Inc) envisioned integrated services for the treatment of epilepsy and pursued a cohesive program. Winchester Medical Center, where both physicians have privileges, provides the necessary neurodiagnostics and surgical facilities to complete the program. A licensed dietitian is also available, who works in conjunction with the physicians and appropriate patients, offering a ketogenic dietary regimen (which, for specific patients, has been shown to be useful in controlling symptoms).

Offering the most comprehensive services for epilepsy, the program is designated as a Level 4 Epilepsy Center by the National Association of Epilepsy Centers. This is the highest designation given and the Virginia Comprehensive Program is only one of three designees in the state. To learn more about Level 4 Epilepsy Centers, go to www.naec-epilepsy.org.

The program is available through physician referral.

View an article from Healthlink Magazine on epilepsy treatments