Nurse practitioner Jody Anderson at Intermountain Medical Center's Epilepsy Clinic in Murray on Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2012. Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News SALT LAKE CITY It can come without warning, beginning with a feeling of dj vu or even dizziness. It usually ends after 30 to 90 seconds of mind-numbing and sometimes exhausting convulsions, and the victim rarely remembers a thing. A seizure can be a frightening experience for the person having it or for onlookers. There are even statewide laws prohibiting anyone who has seizures within a three-month period from driving or operating heavy machinery. But knowing what to do and learning to manage recurring convulsions can help make life easier and more fulfilling for everyone. "A lot of people are scared," said Dr. Jeffrey Bigelow, a neurologist at Intermountain Medical Center's Epilepsy Clinic. "It's a period of time where they can lose control. They become anxious and nervous to have another one, and they live in the fear of it. "Treating it and not having to deal with the fear can bring back someone's confidence," he said. Bigelow is a trained epileptologist and often visits Haiti and various countries in Africa to offer epilepsy patients there a low-cost … Continue reading →

Public release date: 9-Nov-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Professor Merab Kokaia merab.kokaia@med.lu.se 46-706-620-899 Lund University A new EU-funded project aims to develop treatments for epilepsy by using viruses to infect brain cells and by transplanting cells into the brain. The project is called EPIXCHANGE and will be carried out at Lund University, Sweden, as a collaboration with Italian, Danish and French researchers. The total budget of the project is almost EUR 1 million. Epilepsy is a devastating neurological disease affecting 50 million people worldwide. Patients with epilepsy run a higher risk of sudden unexpected death. In Sweden some 60 000 people suffer from epilepsy. Around 30-40% of epileptic patients are refractory to currently available pharmacological treatments, which are mostly symptomatic and often have side effects. Therefore there is a great unmet need to develop novel treatment strategies for epilepsy. The new project will explore the development of encapsulated human cell lines producing the neurotransmitter galanin and/or the neuropeptide Y (NPY) and their effect on epileptic seizures in experimental animals. The project will also use viral vectors to deliver neuropeptides and other proteins neurotrophic factors into the brain to suppress seizures. These novel approaches will lay a foundation … Continue reading →

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/9rfhd6/global_epilepsy) has announced the addition of the "Global Epilepsy Epidemiology and Patient Flow Analysis - 2012" report to their offering. Fore Pharma announced the results of its Epilepsy patient population study in a new report Global Epilepsy Epidemiology and Patient Flow Analysis - 2012'. The report provides insights into Epilepsy epidemiology, Epilepsy diagnosed patients, and Epilepsy treatment rate for top seven pharmaceutical markets. The study measures key indicators such as prevalence of Epilepsy derived from epidemiological analysis, percentage of patients diagnosed with Epilepsy, and percentage of patients treated with Epilepsy therapy. The study helps executives estimate Epilepsy market potential, assess unmet need, develop drug forecasting models, and build population-based health management frameworks. The information presented in this study is used to evaluate market opportunities, effectively identify target patient population, and align marketing decisions. The report provides estimates and forecasts of Epilepsy prevalence, Epilepsy diagnosis rate, and Epilepsy treatment rate for the period 2012-2019. The information is presented by leading geographies including the US, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, UK, and Japan. The study design is based on collection and interpretation of data from registries, scientific journals and literatures, government databases and other secondary sources. Key Features … Continue reading →

Approaches for Children with Autism/Autism Intervention | Anna Dvortcsak, MS, CCC-SLP There are a variety of educational interventions and techniques that are used to improve the outcomes for children with an autism spectrum disorder. Research suggests that there is evidence to support the effectiveness of educational interventions that vary in theoretical framework and implementation. Overlap between the techniques used in educational interventions that vary in theoretical framework has also been reviewed in the literature. The purpose of this presentation is to briefly review and compare the continuum of educational interventions (Behavioral and Developmental) for children with autism. Theoretical framework, defined techniques, and practical implementation of these interventions will be discussed. Treatment approaches that are considered hybrid will be reviewed. The intention of this review is to provide clinicians with basic information on interventions available, some of the components of these interventions, and an overview of the research on intervention techniques. It is not the intention to endorse or refute any of the interventions or to provide training in the implementation of these interventions. There are a variety of interventions for children with autism that claim to be the most effective in improving outcomes for children with autism. This circumstance can … Continue reading →