MRI scan
MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) is a fairly new technique that has been used since the beginning of the 1980s. Dr Sarah Burnett, consultant radiologist and Dr John Pillinger, GP The MRI scan uses magnetic and radio waves, meaning that there is ... [... more]
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Bell's palsy
Bell's palsy is the sudden onset of weakness of the muscles of one side of the face, for which no other cause can be found. It is due to a loss of function in the nerve that supplies the facial muscles (the facial nerve). The cause is unknown, ... [... more]
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Treating epilepsy
Epilepsy is usually treated with medicines. In this way, it is possible for 60-70 per cent of those recently diagnosed with epilepsy to avoid fits, with no or minimal side effects. The most appropriate medicine is administered in the smallest ... [... more]
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Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a major mental illness that causes changes in perception, thoughts and behaviour. Symptoms of schizophrenia include delusions, disordered thoughts and hallucinations. It is a complex condition that defies simple description, but ... [... more]
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Epileptic attacks
Epilepsy is a condition in which people have seizures or 'epileptic attacks'. There are many different types of attacks, ranging from minor symptoms noticed only by the affected person, to convulsions, the most easily recognised type of epileptic ... [... more]
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Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease
There are four main types of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD): These different forms of CJD have different causes and, to some extent, different symptoms. SpCJD, which was first described in 1921, occurs around the world and is the commonest form ... [... more]
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Multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is a permanent disease that is characterised by a slowly progressive disablement. The disease is more common in women than men, and often appears between the ages of 20 and 45. It is more frequently seen in the temperate zones, ... [... more]
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Epilepsy
Epilepsy is a condition in which people have epileptic attacks (also known as seizures). It is one of the more common neurological conditions, affecting 0.5-1 per cent of the population. Epilepsy is not a single condition, but a group of ... [... more]
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Chronic fatigue syndrome (Myalgic encephalomyelitis)
Fatigue is a very common feeling that occurs in a host of circumstances, sometimes as a symptom of illness, at other times as an emotion or as a reaction to life events. Much confusion surrounds the medical use of the term 'fatigue'. Here we use ... [... more]
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Pallidotomy
Dystonia is a syndrome of spasms and sustained contractions of the muscles. These muscle movements are not under voluntary control and they result in repetitive abnormal movements of parts of the body or persistently abnormal postures. Dr Helen ... [... more]
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CT scan
A CT (computerised tomography) scanner is a special kind of X-ray machine. Instead of sending out a single X-ray through your body as with ordinary X-rays, several beams are sent simultaneously from different angles. Dr Sarah Burnett, consultant ... [... more]
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Epilepsy - what are the causes?
Epilepsy is caused by abnormal electric impulses in groups of nerve cells (neurons) found in the brain. For diagnostic purposes, epilepsy is divided into two main groups Electroencephalography (EEG) can show where in the brain the convulsions ... [... more]
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