What is ictal and postictal?

What is ictal and postictal?

Pre-ictal refers to the state immediately before the actual seizure, stroke, or headache. Post-ictal refers to the state shortly after the event. Interictal refers to the period between seizures, or convulsions, that are characteristic of an epilepsy disorder.

What is postictal status?

The postictal state is the abnormal condition occurring between the end of an epileptic seizure and return to baseline condition. Applying this definition operationally can be difficult, especially for complex partial seizures, where cognitive and sensorimotor impairments merge imperceptibly into the postictal state.

What are signs and symptoms for the postictal phase?

Symptoms of the Postictal Phase

• Exhaustion.
• Confusion.
• Fear and anxiety.
• Agitation.
• Frustration.
• Shame or embarrassment.
• Slow to respond or not able to respond right away.
• Memory loss.

What is the primary concern for a patient in the postictal phase of a seizure?

Patients may be unconscious or only respond to painful stimuli during the postictal phase. The patient is likely to have respiratory depression and diminished airway reflexes [4]. Postictal patients may also be confused or combative, especially as they transition from somnolent to awake.

How can we identify ictal and interictal abnormal activity?

Seizures should be delimited in time, but the borders of ictal (during a seizure), interictal (between seizures) and postictal (after a seizure) often are indistinct. EEG recording is potentially very helpful for confirmation, classification and localization.

What are interictal seizures?

Interictal spikes are brief (< 250 millisecond), morphologically defined events observed in the EEGs of patients predisposed to spontaneous seizures of focal onset. The spikes are generated by the synchronous discharges of a group of neurons in a region referred to as the epileptic focus.

What position should a patient be placed in during the postictal phase?

Conclusions: Seizures in prone position occur during sleep and the highest risk for postictal prone positioning appears to be being in the prone position at GCS onset. Epilepsy patients should therefore be advised to go to sleep in a supine or lateral position to reduce their SUDEP risk.

How do you treat postictal patients?

Most patients with postictal delirium do not require specific treatments, but simply need to be protected as their postictal confusion resolves. Patients need supportive care to avoid injuries; for example, windows should be closed and dangerous objects removed; bedrails with padding can be raised around the patient.

Which clinical manifestation does the nurse expect in the client in the post ictal phase of grand mal seizure?

After the Seizure (Postictal Period) He or she may appear to be sleeping or snoring. Gradually the person regains awareness and may feel confused, exhausted, physically sore, sad or embarrassed for a few hours. The person may not remember having a seizure, and may have other memory loss.

What is postictal confusion?

Postictal confusion, therefore, is the period of time following a seizure, which is reported to last anywhere from minutes to several days that can include both mental and physical feelings of exhaustion – does not appear to be a complete definition.

What is ictal phase of seizure?

The middle (ictal) stage of a seizure is called the ictal phase. It’s the time from the first symptom to the end of the seizure activity. It is during this time that intense electrical activity is occurring in the brain. Some common signs of this phase include: Loss of awareness.