Alcohol or drug abuse is a serious problem that affects millions of people around the world. It can cause a range of symptoms, from mild to severe, and can even lead to life-threatening withdrawal seizures. Generalized tonic-clonic seizures, also known as rum attacks, are the most dramatic and dangerous type of alcohol withdrawal syndrome. But what causes these seizures and how can they be prevented?The brain substrates that trigger alcohol withdrawal seizures are mostly found in the brain stem, and are distinct from those responsible for other types of seizures.
Since alcohol withdrawal crises are pharmacologically induced, the pathophysiological mechanisms are different from those of genetic and acquired epilepsy. This review provides an overview of the current understanding of cellular and molecular events leading to alcohol withdrawal seizures. When someone takes that first courageous step towards sobriety, it's surely cause for celebration. After all, every year more than 88,000 deaths are attributed to alcohol use disorder (AUD). It takes a lot of courage to stop drinking and enter a detox program.
People with AUD know very well what withdrawal symptoms feel like, but they do it anyway. Going into recovery is a life-saving option. However, there is a big risk if you try to stop drinking cold turkey on your own. Alcohol withdrawal occurs when you have been drinking a lot of alcohol for days and then stop or reduce it. This can cause seizures in some people.
This is more of a risk in people who drink a lot of alcohol every day. Seizures can also be caused by alcohol, even without withdrawal. Seizures can occur as soon as a few hours after your last drink or up to several days later. Despite being a legal drug in most parts of the world, alcohol has some of the most serious withdrawal symptoms. Seizures can occur in any drinker, but the most common type of alcohol seizures is related to withdrawal, specifically when the person has been drinking a lot for several years. Knowing the different types of seizures that result from alcohol use is vital if you or your loved one is about to go through withdrawal. Anyone who drinks a lot and who also has epilepsy is at even greater risk of seizures and should abstain or reduce their consumption of alcohol as soon as possible.
Alcohol seizures are the result of the effects of the drug on the central nervous system. This is one of the core systems of the body, because it is responsible for transmitting messages to and from the brain. The depression of this system caused by alcohol often causes drinkers to fall asleep very soon after a particularly intense session. A high and rapid dose of alcohol (a drunken session) or the cessation of a prolonged period of heavy drinking can lead to shock in this system and lead to alcohol seizures. The most common alcohol seizures are the result of withdrawal. If you or your loved one have been drinking a lot for several years, there is a risk of seizures during the detoxification process.
This illustrates the importance of getting medical advice before trying to stop drinking. Repeated depression of the central nervous system causes it to come to life more vigorously when the drinker abstains. This “rebound” effect of the nervous system causes alcohol withdrawal seizures. Alcohol seizures usually occur within three days after a person stops drinking, but are more common about eight hours after stopping drinking. For most people, alcohol seizures are isolated events that go away if they stop drinking. If you or your loved one has had an alcohol withdrawal attack or a rum attack, consider this a harsh warning about the dangers of continuing to drink.
Abstaining from alcohol consumption will ensure that the seizure is an isolated event and not a repetitive pattern. If doctors suspect that you or your loved one may be intrinsically susceptible to seizures, medications may be prescribed to control the risk. Heavy drinking can cause alcohol withdrawal seizures in people, even people who don't have epilepsy. Alcohol itself does not normally cause seizures, but during abstinence, when alcohol suppressive activity is eliminated, the brain will be more susceptible to seizures than it would normally. For example, alcohol withdrawal, but not alcohol poisoning, causes an increase in intracellular Ca2+ in the hippocampus and other areas of the brain. Although the relationship between seizures and alcohol consumption is likely to be dose-dependent and causal, available clinical data do not suggest that alcohol consumption leads to the genesis of seizures. Much research has been done on the effects of alcohol on the brain, and scientists continue to bring new insights to help us better understand alcohol abuse and addiction.
Some alcoholics abruptly withdraw from alcohol and anticonvulsants, which increases the risk of epileptic status. The liver cannot process this amount of alcohol quickly enough and the alcohol will be absorbed into the bloodstream. Offer cross-tolerance to alcohol by acting at the GABA receptor site and reducing signs and symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. Generalized tonic-clonic seizures are the most common; focal seizures suggest a different etiology of alcohol withdrawal, although alcohol may lower the seizure threshold in a patient who would otherwise be predisposed to focal seizures. Abrupt cessation of alcohol consumption after drinking a lot for a long time can trigger withdrawal seizures. Up to a third of patients with significant abstinence may experience an episode during detoxification from alcoholism.
Unfortunately, even when drinking is motivated solely by social factors, it can become excessive and turn into addiction. While only a small percentage of patients who withdraw from alcohol develop epileptic status, abstinence can be a complicating factor in approximately one-fifth of all patients with epileptic status. Most crises occur between 12 and 48 hours after a sharp decrease in blood concentrations. In conclusion, understanding why alcohol withdrawal causes seizures is essential for anyone considering quitting drinking or helping someone else quit drinking safely. Knowing how this condition works can help prevent serious health complications associated with sudden cessation from heavy drinking.
