[marykath]

We have an appointment with a pediatric neurologist tomorrow for our 3-year-old, drug-exposed daughter. It was recommended by our child psychologist, who suggested the "blank-out" periods our daughter has - that we thought were disassociation stemming from previous neglect, etc. - are actually seizures.
I'm a little scared, but really look at this as an oportunity to find out more about what is going on w/ her. I wrote up two pages of notes about her background, difficulties paying attention, Regional Center history, etc.
So, anyone seen a pediatric neuro? What can he/she tell you? Was it helpful?
Also, has anyone's child ever had an eeg?

[Kelly Rae]

Yes, and yes. Our son saw one and was followed by his for a year. Our son was drug/alcohol exposed and had tremors since he came to us. At three he had eeg and had a seizure disorder ruled out. The dr. asked a lot of questions and then said first we would do an eeg and depending on the result we would then do a mri. His eeg was fine so the dr continued appts every 4 months for a year and we were told to come back if H developed any troubling symptoms. He still tremors when really excited or emotional. Great that you wrote his history out it will be useful and give the dr a better idea of what is going on. Hope you get good news, but if you don't seizure disorders are for the most part treatable.

[Lylac]

Hi Marykath!

I have 3 kids..not drug exposed, but all of them have seizure disorders and been seen by a neuro for most of their lives. We've had numerous EEG's, MRI's (sedated and non) Ton's of labs and dozens of seizure meds.

You'll be so relieved to finally get some answers and if it's truley seizures, and most likely can be controlled by meds. Most of the test are painless, except for trying to get the glue/paste out of their hair. They glue the elctrobes to certain spots on their heads and then flash lights in their eyes to get a reading of their brainwaves. Thats the EEG..The MRI shows if theres any brain damage..and gives more of a detailed outlook.

I know all of this may seem overwhelming..at first. But I assure you, it will be a piece of cake..most of the time. Good Luck and keep us updated

[maricela]

My son was not drug exposed but was diagnosed with seizure disorder at about 9 years old. He too had the "blank-out" episodes & he was having actually having peti-mail seizures. He's had many MRI's & EEG's. If it turns out to be seizures, they can be controlled with medication!

My daughter was drug exposed and had seizures at birth (before she came home) and once when she was about 5 months old. Nothing was found & she hasn't had a seizure since.

The sleep deprived EEG was tough for both kids!! Not the actual EEG but trying to get them to stay awake was tough! They slept though the EEG's.

Don't be scared! For me, not knowing what was going on was scarier.

Good Luck to you!!

[mrsred]

We just recently went thru the waking/sleeping eeg with our foster daughter. When the nurse called me ahead, she said to keep her up till midnight then wake her at 4 AM to ensure she would sleep for the sleeping portion. No way. We live an hour from the children's hospital where the test would take place. It would be impossible for me to keep her awake on the drive there!
I kept her up till 10:30 and woke her up at 5:00. On the drive there she kept asking for her blankie, but I knew if I gave it to her she would drop off.
She managed to stay awake just long enough to get through the waking portion, then fell asleep in less than 2 minutes when they said she could sleep.
The tests did show that she has "spikes" indicative of a seizure disorder. On the follow up with the neurologist he said she has a mild form of epilepsy with simple partial siezures. Simple meaning she does not lose or have an alterred state of consciousness, and partial because they are confined to her legs.
He has started her on anti seizure meds, and will follow up with an MRI.

[marykath]

Thank you so much for your replies. The visit to the nuerologist went very well...he was very nice, understanding, and very fun. Our daughter liked him a lot. Definitely not scary! We go in for an eeg sometime in the next week. All this sleep-depravation stuff does sound tricky - the doc is about 2 hours away!

[Withay]

My 15 mo fs has been having seizures since Feb. He goes in for an EEG on 6/6. Like all of you, the neuro wants him awake when we get there and very sleepy. Luckily, we only live about 20 minutes from the hospital, but the appt is not at a nap time for him (3 hrs before). This means I will have to get him up at least 2 hrs early and keep him awake on the way there. Not easy considering his carseat is in the back of the van and I can't reach him from the drivers seat. Guess I'll have to try the air conditioner or something because he likes to sleep in the car.