Patient's question:
The child next door to my mother-in-law is an epilepsy patient. The child has had epilepsy for several years. It is said that they have gone to many places and tried many methods, but there has been no cure. Sometimes it still has episodes. During an episode, the child's limbs convulse, and they also foam at the mouth. The family is very worried about the child's condition and wants to consult about whether epilepsy affects a person's lifespan.Doctor's answer:
Epilepsy itself rarely causes death, while accidental injuries caused by seizures are not uncommon. Although accidental accidents resulting from seizures can lead to unexpected deaths among epilepsy patients, overall, epilepsy does not affect the length of life for the entire population of epilepsy patients. Epilepsy is only harmful to patients during seizures, and relatively less harmful when they are not having seizures. As long as epilepsy patients receive proper care, their lifespan is not affected. The sudden onset of epilepsy can cause accidental injuries to patients, so epilepsy requires timely treatment and control of seizures.