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Epilepsy glossary - E
Educational psychologist – a person who specialises in the mental and emotional development of children. Educational psychologists are often involved in supporting children at school who have special educational needs.
Electroencephalogram (EEG) – a test which looks at brain activity. The test involves having small electrodes put on the head to record the electrical activity of the brain. This test is often done if someone is thought to be having seizures. The test can only record the activity of the brain at the time the test is being done. An EEG usually cannot say for certain if someone has epilepsy but it can be used alongside the results of other tests to reach a diagnosis.
Emergency medication – another name for rescue medication.
Enzyme – proteins found in the body that help with normal chemical reactions.
Enzyme-inducing drugs – drugs that increase the levels of enzymes in the liver. Enzyme-inducing AEDs are likely to affect types of contraception that have hormones in them (and make the contraception less effective in stopping pregnancy). This is an important point for women with epilepsy who take both AEDs and some forms of contraception.
Epidemiological studies – looking at the effects of a condition in a population.
Epigastric rising sensation – the feeling you get when you go on a fairground ride or over a hump-back bridge where you ‘lose your tummy at the top’. This is a common simple partial seizure.
Epilepsy – the tendency to have repeated seizures that start in the brain.
Epileptic focus – the area of the brain where partial epileptic seizures start.
Epileptic seizure – seizures that start due to interrupted electrical activity in the brain but can affect the body in many different ways.
