No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Florida, 2005. / Title from title page of source document. Document formatted into pages; contains 160 pages. Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references.

published_or_final_version / Medicine / Master / Doctor of Medicine

No description available.

Differentiating between organic epilepsy and psychogenic pseudoseizures is a difficult task even for experienced practitioners . Both disorders present in a similar manner and at present there are no clinical signs that distinguish between them. Latrogenesis may occur when psychogenic seizures are treated medically and sometimes aggressively in order to control seizure activity. Quality of life is negatively impacted on in both patient groups and stigmatisation and social isolation frequently occur. Psychiatric comorbidity is associated with both epilepsy and psychogenic seizures. The primary aim of this study was to explore the possibility of finding a definitive means of discriminating between the two patient groups. This study assessed quality of life and psychiatric dysfunction in both patient groups using the QOLIE-31 and the SCL-90-R instruments, respectively. The Seizure Questionnaire was used to assess qualitative aspects. The sample (n = 19) was made up of 10 females and nine males with a mean age of 30.6 years (S D = 8.9, range l8 - 44 years). One case of mixed seizures was excluded. The sample was taken from an epilepsy monitoring unit in a hospital in Durban, South Africa. On the scales of the SCL-90-R, Anxiety showed significant difference between groups and on the QOLIE-31 scales, Energy/Fatigue, Cognitive Functioning and Overall score showed significant differences. These differences were in the expected direction as found in previous research i n the literature. These trends need to be interpreted cautiously given the sample size. / Thesis (M.Soc.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2006.

Epilepsy, a relatively common and chronic neurological condition, affects 1-2% of the population. The underlying pathophysiology of epileptogenesis is not completely understood. To identify potential antecedents to seizure, the effects of maternal stress and environmental enrichment (EE) were investigated. Maternal stress was modeled by exposing pregnant rats to a prenatal stress (PS; an ethologically relevant predatory threat). At birth, PS and naïve control (NC) dams and litters were either maintained in standard cages or transferred to EE until postnatal day (PD) 14. A model of febrile convulsions (FC) was used to determine seizure susceptibility of all offspring. Pup brains were processed for detection of FosB (FosB-ir) from structures in the limbic system and corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH-ir) from the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN). Our results suggest pre- and postnatal dam-dependent effects. PS increased glucocorticoid (GC) levels in dams and decreased pup birth-weights. Seizure scores on PD14 were highly individualized and litter dependent, suggesting a dam-dependent and variable effect of controlled pre- and postnatal factors. EE increased FosBir within the hippocampus but, in other regions, EE decreased FosB-ir. EE also significantly decreased CRH-ir in the PVN. Our results support the concept that both preand postnatal environmental influences affect fetal programming and neurodevelopment.

This thesis is about how medical knowledge is constructed by staff for patients and their families in a Japanese 'comprehensive care' facility for the treatment of epilepsy (the JEC). The thesis sets out to explain the possible reasons for differences between the number of surgeries of epilepsy performed at the JEC and the number performed in a Canadian institute. I will argue in the thesis that the fundamental difference between the two institutes lies in cross cultural and cross institutional differences in the uses and interpretations of the polysemic phrases 'comprehensive care' and 'quality of life'. They are ideological constructs embedded in a social process of knowledge production. Uncritical acceptance of these institutional objectives has significant ideological consequences in that it (1) justifies the unequal distribution of services, (2) legitimates the treatment program's objectives, and (3) masks the social relations out of which authoritative knowledge about epilepsy at the JEC is produced.

No description available.

This thesis explored the relationship between temporal lobe epilepsy and aggressive behavior. Prior studies have shown that temporal lobe epileptics display more aggressive behavior than do epileptics with other brain foci. This investigation explored the above mentioned relationship as it exists among the resident population of the New Castle State Hospital. Fifty-three temporal lobe subjects were identified and then matched with respect to age, sex, institutional environment, age of seizure onset, and medication. Frequency of aggressive acts was the dependent variable observed.Temporal lobe epileptics were observed tom differ from the non-temporal lobe epileptics in aggressive behavior. The non-temporal lobe epileptics were found to be significantly more self-aggressive (p<.05). Analysis of aggression towards objects or aggression toward other persons was not significant.

The current study investigated the efficacy of using a writing intervention based in the self-regulated strategy development (SRSD) approach for teaching paragraph writing skills to three students with epilepsy who struggled with writing. Individuals with epilepsy often have difficulties with the same cognitive processes that are involved in the writing process such as attention, working memory, and self-regulation. The study used a multiple baseline approach and participants' paragraphs were examined across the following WIAT-II paragraph scoring domains: number of words written, mechanics, organization, vocabulary, and total paragraph score. Effects on participants' self-efficacy beliefs towards paragraph writing were also examined. Results revealed an improvement in number of words written, paragraph organization, overall writing quality, and self-efficacy towards writing for all participants following the ten week intervention. Limitations to the study and implications for educators are discussed. / Graduate / 0525 / 0529