You may have a lot of questions about epilepsy. We will help you understand the basics, answer the most common questions, and help you find resources and other information you may need. However, information alone won’t help you manage your epilepsy and find a way to cope with the effects on your daily life. You’ll need to learn how to use the information and make it work for you.
What is Epilepsy?
Epilepsy is a neurological condition which affects the nervous system. Epilepsy is also known as a seizure disorder. It is usually diagnosed after a person has had at least two seizures that were not caused by some known medical condition.
What are Seizures?
Seizures seen in epilepsy are caused by disturbances in the electrical activity of the brain. The seizures in epilepsy may be related to a brain injury or a family tendency, but most of the time the cause is unknown…
Seizures are caused by disturbances in the electrical activity of the brain.
65 MILLION: Number of people around the world who have epilepsy.
OVER 2 MILLION: Number of people in the United States who have epilepsy.
1 IN 26 people in the United States will develop epilepsy at some point in their lifetime.
BETWEEN 4 AND 10 OUT OF 1,000: Number of people on earth who live with active seizures at any one time.
150,000: Number of new cases of epilepsy in the United States each year
ONE-THIRD: Number of people with epilepsy who live with uncontrollable seizures because no available treatment works for them.
6 OUT OF 10: Number of people with epilepsy where the cause is unknown.
Who Gets Epilepsy
Epilepsy and seizures can develop in any person at any age.1 in 26 people will develop epilepsy in their lifetime.
Factors such as other health conditions, age, and race may make developing epilepsy and seizures more likely.
Epilepsy and seizures can develop in any person at any age. Seizures and epilepsy are more common in young children and older people.
About 1 in 100 people in the U.S. has had a single unprovoked seizure or has been diagnosed with epilepsy.
1 in 26 people will develop epilepsy (which is the tendency to recurring seizures) in their lifetime. People with certain conditions may be at greater risk. (See "What causes epilepsy and seizures?")
Each year, about 48 of every 100,000 people will develop epilepsy. However, seizures may occur more often in different age groups (very young and older people), in different races, and in different areas of the world.
At any one point in time, between 2.2 and 3 million people are treated for epilepsy.
The 2.2 million figure comes from a study of people in Rochester, Minnesota, who were followed for many years. This data is outdated and we aren’t sure how true the number is now.
The higher number of 3 million people comes from a telephone survey of people who report that they have been treated for epilepsy.
Epilepsy is the 4th most common neurological condition and epilepsy affects more than 65 million people worldwide,
More men than women have epilepsy overall by a small amount.
When are people most likely to get epilepsy?
New cases of epilepsy are most common among children, especially during the first year of life.
The rate of new cases of epilepsy gradually goes down until about age 10 and then becomes stable.
After age 55, the rate of new cases of epilepsy starts to increase, as people develop strokes, brain tumors, or Alzheimer's disease, which all can cause epilepsy.
Does epilepsy occur more often in people after traumatic brain injury?
Yes, seizures do happen frequently in people who have had a traumatic injury to the brain. This may include a fall, blow to the head, gunshot wound or other traumatic injury.
Seizures can occur early after the injury, for example within days to the first few weeks of the initial trauma. These seizures are usually the result of the initial event that cause bleeding, trauma or swelling of the brain. These early seizures may go away after the acute injury calms down.
Seizures can also occur later on after the acute injury has resolved or been treated. These seizures are caused by scarring to the brain from the initial injury. The brain cells are not working as they did before, and are capable of producing ‘electrical storms’ known as seizures. When these seizures occur independently from the initial injury, a person is said to have post-traumatic epilepsy (meaning seizures caused by or occurring after brain trauma).
Members of the armed forces who have been in combat are particularly vulnerable to post-traumatic epilepsy. For example, up to 53% of soldiers who had brain injuries during Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom are at risk for post-traumatic epilepsy.
For more information, visit our Veterans page.
