Seizures

My son is 27. In the last year he has had three seizures.  Two of those times he was taken to the ER.  The first one they did blood work and a CAT scan.  Tests were normal.  This last time they just did blood work which was again normal.  These episodes seem to happen late in the day when he's been working all day and failing to eat his meals properly.  Is it possible his blood sugar level drops suddenly long enough or low enough to cause the seizure but return to a normal level by the time it is checked? Any suggestions of other causes would be appreciated.

[Anita Ramsetty, MD]

Hi,
It would be unusual for your son's blood sugar to drop low enough to cause a seizure because he had not eaten for a period of time. Seizures from hypoglycemia usually occur with blood sugars below 30. If he has a disease causing this, then his sugar would likely also be low every morning as he had not eaten all night, so I think it is unlikely. Not impossible, but unlikely. He can start checking his blood sugars at various times of the day(and definitely if he feels overly tired, shaky or confused) to see if low values are present.

There are many potential causes of seizures and I am afraid this is very much outside of my specialty. I do suggest that your son be seen by a neurologist as soon as possible, and refrain from driving  until he has been fully evaluated.
Take care.