Volume 13, Issue 10: Functional seizures – fitting the pieces together

Functional seizures – fitting the pieces together

You have been dispatched to the local shopping centre where a 19-year-old female has been found fitting. On arrival you make your way through the gathering crowd. You find the patient, whose limbs are shaking violently, but something doesn’t seem quite right…

CPD Benefit

This article discusses sexual abuse and trauma in relation to functional neurological disorders. Functional seizures are a subtype of functional neurological disorders (FNDs). An FND can be defined as ‘a condition in which people experience neurological symptoms in the absence of any identifiable causative physical or structural abnormality’. Patients with FND account for 9% of all acute neurological admissions, and approximately 10% of seizures within the emergency department will be functional seizures. This article will explore common myths and misunderstandings concerning functional seizures through consideration of risk factors, language and harmful practice and identification and management of the condition.