What is the Lennox Gastaut syndrome?
Children with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome have a severe form of epilepsy. Usually they also have intellectual disabilities and sometimes behavior problems.
The child gets from about his second or third year regular violent seizures. Sometimes the child had already been attacks by West syndrome. This syndrome occurs in younger children for and is often about in Lennox-Gastaut.
The child has different types of attacks, such as:
- a drop attack. The child is then suddenly front or back.
- long absences (pronounced: apsanses). A absence (apsans) is often not as the child does not respond during an absence on the outside world. Children chewing, yawning, blinking or turn with the eyes.
- a rigid cramping. This gets the child often when it is tired or just before it falls asleep. It stiffens and then running with the eyes.
- a status epilepticus. This is an attack or a succession of attacks that takes longer than 15 minutes. This type of attack at Lennox-Gastaut more common than with other epilepsy types.
The neurologist allows Lennox-Gastaut with an EEG.
The Lennox-Gastaut syndrome is usually due to brain damage. The child may be born with this damage, or get him later.
Lennox-Gastaut syndrome is difficult to treat. Sometimes medications reduce the attacks. But it is very difficult to find the right combination of medications. The intellectual disability is usually so severe that the child never will be able to provide for themselves.