Grand Mal Seizure Symptoms

Grand mal seizure symptoms are signs of abnormal brain function. It is important to recognize the symptoms of seizure because of the potential danger to the sufferers as they experience a loss of body awareness and organized movement.

Grand Mal

• Grand mal seizures are also called tonic-clonic seizures. The tonic phase involves a loss of consciousness and tensing of muscles, while the clonic phase involves rapid contraction and relaxation of muscles, or convulsions.

Symptoms

• Seizures involve abnormal electric activity in the brain. Symptoms of grand mal seizures affect the entire body and may involve violent muscle contractions, loss of consciousness, fatigue, confusion, headache and loss of control over the bowels or bladder.

Appearance

• As the contractions take hold, the grand mal seizure may cause victims to arch their backs, to extend the arms or legs uncontrollably, and ultimately to fall. People experiencing seizure may cry out because the air in their lungs is forced through their contracting vocal cords.

Causes

• Causes of grand mal seizures may include trauma, epilepsy, low sugar/salt/mineral levels, infection, tumor or unusual blood vessel formations in the brain, and drug and alcohol abuse. The seizure condition is called epilepsy if two or more seizures are reported.

Care and Treatment

• Daily medication, vagus nerve stimulation and a ketogenic diet can help control grand mal seizures. Anyone suffering from a seizure disorder should wear a medical alert bracelet to inform emergency personnel of the condition.

Seizure Complications

• During a seizure, the victim may receive trauma from falls, the seizure itself, or damage resulting from activities under way when the seizure presented (auto accidents, drowning, burns). Seizures can cause memory loss, violent behaviors, certain types of brain damage and death.