Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder that tends to genetically show as a person begins puberty. In my family, epilepsy is a well known disease, as my sister Kyla suffers from three different types of seizures. She was diagnosed at the age of 12 after having a cluster of Tonic Clonic seizures (the flailing seizure), Absence seizures and Myoclonic seizures (twitches). My parents immediately began looking for possible medications that could put the seizures to rest, and came across quite a few methods.  

The most common anti-epileptic drug on the market is Lamotrigine, a medication labelled as an anticonvulsant. This drug belongs to the phenyltriazine class and can also be used as a mood stabilizer (for those dealing with bipolar disorder). Lamotrigine acts on the central nervous system to control the severity and/or number of seizures one endures. Its overall function is to suppress the activity of certain parts of the brain and the abnormal firing of nerve cells that cause seizures. Lamotrigine targets the overactive cells that exist in people with epilepsy and decreases their activity, returning the brain to a normal state of being. 

Lamotrigine is a very versatile medication, and can be used in the treatment of many different diseases/disorders. As another example, I have an older brother who suffers from Cerebral Palsy. One of the medications he also takes is Lamotrigine, as it is a drug that takes on many forms of aid. It has also been proven to aid in Huntington’s Disease. The degeneration of nerve cells in HD is caused by the fragility of its glutamate. Glutamate is a neurotransmitter that is used to pass information from one nerve cell to another and those who are suffering from HD have very low glutamate levels. In this case, the lamotrigine acts as an anti-glutamate drug that interferes with the sodium channels, creating a false neurotransmitter to mimic what glutamate would do for one’s body. In 2002, a lab was carried out to test whether Lamotrigine actually helps or whether it’s just placebo. Cognitive improvements were seen in both verbal fluency and digit modalities. Lamotrigine is a drug that can be used in many forms, as it is quite flexible. 

Citations

Epilepsy Ottawa, epilepsyottawa.ca/. 

“Epilepsy.” Mayo Clinic, Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 5 May 2020, www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/epilepsy/symptoms-causes/syc-20350093. 

“Fund Research: Find a Cure.” Epilepsy Canada, www.epilepsy.ca/. 

“What Is Epilepsy? Disease or Disorder?” Epilepsy Foundation, 21 Jan. 2014, www.epilepsy.com/learn/about-epilepsy-basics/what-epilepsy. 

“What Is Nanotechnology?” Home, www.nano.gov/nanotech-101/what/definition.