What should you know about covid and epilepsy?

An infection can challenge the routines that help control epilepsy. Fever, vomiting, diarrhoea, reduced food or fluid intake, sleep loss, and difficulty absorbing or remembering medicine may lower seizure control. Some people may also have symptoms that resemble seizures, so a new event should be described carefully rather than assumed to have one cause.

COVID-19 symptoms do not replace the usual epilepsy plan. Keep a record of the event, including warning symptoms, movements, awareness, duration, recovery, fever, and any missed dose.

Continue regular epilepsy medicine unless the prescriber tells you otherwise. Use reminders, keep medicine supplies organised, rest as much as possible, and take small frequent drinks if you can swallow safely. If vomiting prevents medicine from staying down, or you cannot obtain a prescription, contact a healthcare professional promptly for individual advice.

Tell people at home what to do during a seizure: move hazards away, cushion the head, loosen tight clothing, and place the person on their side after convulsions stop. Do not restrain them or put anything in their mouth. A GP Consultation can help review illness, medicines, and follow-up.

Call emergency services if a seizure lasts longer than the person's usual pattern, repeats without recovery, causes serious injury, happens in water, or causes ongoing breathing difficulty. Seek urgent advice for a first seizure, a clear increase in seizure frequency, severe dehydration, or inability to take prescribed medicine.

Ask what to do if vomiting affects a dose, whether fever medicines are suitable with your prescriptions, when to use a rescue medicine if one has been prescribed, and how soon a change in seizure pattern should be reviewed.