How to properly discontinue and reduce medication for people with epilepsy

  Patient: “Hello doctor, my epilepsy has not recurred for a year, can I stop the medication now?”  Answer: “Hello, epilepsy is a chronic disease, poorly controlled, may extend for several years, or even decades, it is not recommended that patients stop their own medication. If the patient has been taking medication for more than 2-3 years without seizures, you can first go to the hospital to do a long-range video EEG to check the situation, and then under the guidance of the doctor to reduce the amount of medication until the drug is discontinued.”  Epilepsy is a chronic disease in which sudden abnormal discharges of neurons in the brain cause transient brain dysfunction. And seizures are a clinical phenomenon caused by abnormal and excessive hyper-synchronized discharges of neurons in the brain. There are a variety of presentations depending on the location of the abnormally discharged neurons in the brain, which can be motor-sensory or autonomic with or without changes in consciousness or level of alertness.  There are many causes of epilepsy and a variety of symptoms, and there are different treatments for different symptoms. The first time a patient has a seizure and is diagnosed, he or she must not take medication on his or her own, but must seek regular medical attention and take medication under the guidance of a doctor. If you do not choose the right medication, not only will it be ineffective, but it may even aggravate the seizures.  The actual fact is that you will not be able to get a good deal on your own. How long does epilepsy go without action before you can stop the medication? It is necessary to combine the patient’s specific condition to know. If a patient with epilepsy has not had a seizure for more than two years, he or she can go to the hospital to have a long-range video EEG to see if there are any abnormal discharges in the brain, and if there are no more discharges or fewer discharges, the dosage can be gradually reduced until the medication is stopped under the guidance of the doctor. If the seizures are secondary, such as intracranial infections, after active treatment, the foci of intracranial infections have disappeared and the medication can be reduced or discontinued under the guidance of the doctor.  The danger of irregular medication and indiscriminate discontinuation of medication for epilepsy It is not advisable for patients with epilepsy to take medication irregularly or discontinue it indiscriminately on their own, which may cause serious rebound consequences and cause recurrent seizures or persistent status of epilepsy. If not actively treated, it may cause respiratory and cardiac arrest, causing severe lack of blood and oxygen supply to the brain, and even endangering the patient’s life.  Epilepsy is a chronic and intractable brain disease, and a one-time cure is unrealistic. However, 90% of epilepsy patients can be cured, 70% of them can be cured by long-term medication, and most of the remaining intractable epilepsy can be cured by surgery.  In addition to taking medication on time and in the right amount, patients with epilepsy should also have regular reviews in their daily lives. The most important thing is to have a healthy lifestyle, live a regular life, rest on time, get enough sleep, avoid staying up late, fatigue, and stop drinking. The actual fact is that you will be able to get a lot more than just a few of the most popular and most popular products.