Male Speaker: Approximately 335,000 Canadians have epilepsy with the majority being diagnosed before the age of 18 and 44% diagnosed before the age of 5. Epileptic Seizure emergencies can be frightening to parents and caregivers. In these situations the time from seizure onset to initial treatment is critical in attaining seizure control. Dr. John Pellock is a Professor and Chairman at the Division of Child Neurology, Virginia Commonwealth University/Medical College of Virginia.
Dr. John Pellock: Seizures can represent anything from a staring spell, blank stare to convulsion and they come from your brain and in uncontrolled way. If somebody sees another person having a seizure the first thing to do is keep them hurting themselves that's the number one priority. First aid, lay them down, put them on their side, allow them to drool that's it keep them safe.
Male Speaker: For patients with a history of recurrent, serial, cluster or crescendo seizures an immediate rescue treatment is often recommended to help safely stop or shorten seizures quickly to reduce long-term health risks. DIASTAT or Diazepam is the only portable rescue treatment intended for use by caregivers in the home setting. It is intended for use in patients two years of age are older, will require intermittent use of Diazepam treatment to control bouts of increased seizure activity.
Dr. John Pellock: If a person has epilepsy the main thing we can do is be prepared to help them. Helping them may be medication and may be first-aid, but keep them safe, stop the seizure, get the medical care. That's the importance of preparedness.
Male Speaker: To learn more about how to develop a seizure preparedness plan visit epilepsy.ca or speak with your doctor.
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