自闭症谱和癫痫频繁发生在一起。这两个条件都会影响大脑功能和行为。然而，研究人员尚未完全理解为什么两个条件分享如此强大的联系。
Autism spectrum disorders, or autism, are a group of neurodevelopmental disorders. Autism can affect a person’s social behavior, speech, cognition, and attention.
癫痫是一种导致复发癫痫发作的神经系统疾病。癫痫发作是大脑中非典型或不受控制的电信活性的结果。
今天，研究人员正在努力更好地了解自闭症和癫痫之间的联系。他们希望更好地了解这一关系将导致更有效的方法来诊断和管理未来的条件。
在这里，了解它们在一起的频率以及是否更糟糕地发生频率。
An autistic person can also have epilepsy. In fact, they’re such a common co-occurrence, doctors consider them comorbidities, or chronic conditions present at the same time.
根据疾病控制和预防的中心（CDC），
癫痫is less common. The CDC says that
However, rates of the two disorders in people with one or the other are many times higher. About
In a
Researchers understand that autistic people frequently have seizures. However, the exact reasons why are not clear. It’s also unclear why some autistic people will develop epilepsy and others won’t.
Seizures由他们在大脑中开始的地方以及它们如何影响身体来定义。
自闭症人士可以体验几种类型的癫痫发作。对于频谱上的人没有通用癫痫发作类型，大脑中没有共同的位置。
Seizures in autistic people may be:
- Partial or focal seizures.Focal onset or partial seizuresstart in one area of the brain. They may cause loss of awareness, but not always. If you do have loss of awareness, you won’t remember what happened during the seizure. Symptoms include muscle contractions, repetitive behaviors like blinking or lip smacking, and unusual head or eye movements.
- Tonic seizures.During this type of seizure, muscles stiffen and grow rigid. This commonly occurs in the back, arms, and legs.
- 克隆癫痫发作。This type of seizure causes repeated jerking motions. It often affects both sides of the body.
- Generalized tonic-clonic seizures.Often affecting both sides of the body,generalized tonic-clonic seizuresmay cause a combination of symptoms.
- Atonic seizures.与滋补癫痫发作相反，atonic seizurescause loss of muscle tone. A person may fall or drop their head because their muscles can’t sustain them.
- Absence seizures.During缺席癫痫发作, a person may stare off without focusing. They may also have slight muscle twitches.
- 发热癫痫发作。Febrile seizuresoccur most often in children from 3 months to 6 years old. They’re most commonly a result of high fever. But some children who are later diagnosed with ASD have a history of febrile seizures.
Some symptoms of autism can appear like symptoms of epilepsy. For example, both ASD and epilepsy affect language, communication, and even coordination.
更重要的是，2015 research建议人们long-term epilepsymay show behaviors similar to those seen in autistic people. These include difficulty with social interactions and lack of attention.
For that reason, it may be difficult to recognize seizure activity in an autistic child. Children on the autism spectrum may also have difficulties explaining their seizure activity or symptoms because of language barriers. That means parents and caregivers should be aware of potential signs of epilepsy in children with ASD.
These signs can include:
- 注意力
- 失去焦点
- blank stares orzoning out
- repetitive sensory stimulation, such as blinking or lip smacking
- unusual sensory experiences, such as auras
- 失去平衡与协调
Having epilepsy may mean that an autistic person needs more support. In fact, a2013 studyfound that autistic children with epilepsy tend to have more severe symptoms of ASD and are more hyperactive. Autistic adults with epilepsy also have higher support needs.
Researchers do not believe epilepsy leads to or causes autism. They do not think autism causes epilepsy, either. However, others factors may make one of the conditions more likely.
例如，如果孩子有智力残疾，他们更有可能发展癫痫。
癫痫的自闭症患者也往往更老了 - 即癫痫，在自闭症谱上的老年人和成年人中更常见。据A.
It’s unclear how epilepsy affects the symptoms of autism. But some recent studies are shedding light. A2020 studyfound that autistic individuals who later began to have seizures had lower adaptive functioning. Adaptive functioning is the term used to describe activities of daily life, like grooming, getting dressed, avoiding danger, cooking, making friends, working, and other things people do most days.
Further research is needed to see how adaptive functioning in people on the spectrum might be related to the risk of developing a seizure disorder.
没有一次测试diagnose autism.
相反，医生将审查一个人的病史，行为和症状。它们可以将这些标志与标准化的诊断标准进行比较。
Because autism is considered a spectrum, no two people are likely to have the same symptoms. The impact of ASD on behaviors and abilities will vary from one person to the next.
Doctors and pediatricians typically screen for symptoms of autism during annual well-child visits. If your child has a history of seizures or an epilepsy diagnosis, screening for ASD may happen more often.
癫痫is typically diagnosed after a person has two or more unprovoked seizures. Unprovoked means the seizures were not the result of an obvious issue, such as a high fever or head injury.
Doctors may also use an脑电图to see electrical activity in the brain. They can look for evidence of epileptic brain activity. This device can record what happens in the brain during a seizure, too.
A doctor may also order血汗工作某些大脑扫描才能帮助制作一个诊断.
There is no special diagnosis for epilepsy if you are on the autism spectrum. It will be diagnosed the same way it would be in a person who is not on the spectrum.
The treatment for epilepsy in autistic people is no different from treatment in people who are not on the spectrum.
Antiepileptic drugs被癫痫患者屈服。这些药物致力于减少癫痫发作的严重程度。它们也可能降低频率。
Common epilepsy medications include:
- carbamazepine(Carbatrol, Tegretol)
- 加布邦(Neurontin, Gralise)
- 拓扑酸盐(Topamax)
- phenytoin(Dilantin, Phenytek)
然而，抗癫痫药物具有显着的副作用，因此您的医生可能会密切关注问题的迹象。Changing epilepsy medicationsmay be necessary.
孤独症儿童的早期干预是非常重要的ren with epilepsy. When started early, interventions can help enhance and grow a child’s long-term functioning, including language skills, social skills, and behavior.
Not all autistic people will develop seizures or epilepsy. Likewise, not all people with epilepsy will have an autism spectrum disorder. But research is clear: Epilepsy and autism frequently occur together. However, the reason is unclear.
If you suspect you have had a seizure, it’s important to seek out medical attention or see a neurologist.
在自闭症儿童中筛查癫痫症对获得早期治疗至关重要。同样，应该筛选癫痫的孩子才能攻击自闭症的迹象。对于自闭症儿童来说，早期干预可以显着提高他们的生活质量。