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Dr. Andrew Rynne
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Dr. Andrew Rynne

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Could Seizure And Problems With Balance Be The Symptoms Of Stroke?

My mother is 78 years old. Last night she had a seziure that lasted quite a while. When she stopped having the seziure she was very disoriented. My father said her forehead was hot to the touch. Today she is having a small problem with balance. Does this sound like a stroke?
Tue, 1 Jul 2014
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Neurologist,  's  Response
Hi,

Thank you for posting your query.

I have noted the symptoms of your mother.

Seizures can lead to disorientation in the post-ictal state (just after the seizures). So, her disorientation can be explained on this basis.

Problems with balance may indicate problem with blood circulation of brain. This could be due to a small stroke in the brain.

Also, seizures in elderly are caused most often by brain ischemia (lack of blood flow to the brain).

Therefore, we need to exclude a diagnosis of brain stroke. This can be done by doing an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan of brain.

At this stage, she should be started on anti-epileptic medications such as levetiracetam to prevent recurrence of seizures.

I hope my reply has helped you.

I would be pleased to answer, if you have any follow up queries or if you require any further information.
     
Best wishes,
Dr Sudhir Kumar MD (Internal Medicine), DM (Neurology)
Senior Consultant Neurologist
Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad,
For DIRECT QUERY to me: http://bit.ly/Dr-Sudhir-kumar
My blog: http://bestneurodoctor.blogspot.com/
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Could Seizure And Problems With Balance Be The Symptoms Of Stroke?

Hi, Thank you for posting your query. I have noted the symptoms of your mother. Seizures can lead to disorientation in the post-ictal state (just after the seizures). So, her disorientation can be explained on this basis. Problems with balance may indicate problem with blood circulation of brain. This could be due to a small stroke in the brain. Also, seizures in elderly are caused most often by brain ischemia (lack of blood flow to the brain). Therefore, we need to exclude a diagnosis of brain stroke. This can be done by doing an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan of brain. At this stage, she should be started on anti-epileptic medications such as levetiracetam to prevent recurrence of seizures. I hope my reply has helped you. I would be pleased to answer, if you have any follow up queries or if you require any further information. Best wishes, Dr Sudhir Kumar MD (Internal Medicine), DM (Neurology) Senior Consultant Neurologist Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad, For DIRECT QUERY to me: http://bit.ly/Dr-Sudhir-kumar My blog: http://bestneurodoctor.blogspot.com/