Protocolo terapéutico ante una crisis epiléptica en urgencias y estado epiléptico

Abstract

Emergency treatment of epileptic seizures consists of several phases. First, high-risk epileptic seizures should be identified. The first action when faced with the start of an epileptic seizure is to observe and take a series of general measures that may influence the seizure's progress. In the event a seizure is abnormally prolonged, there is the risk of entering into status epilepticus. Therefore, drug treatment must be started, initially with benzodiazepines and then with intravenous antiseizure drugs. Once status epilepticus is established, in the event of a lack of response to these lines of treatment, sedation with anesthetics in the intensive care unit should be considered and, in the most severe cases such as convulsive status epilepticus or coma, should be considered early; all patients should be monitored via EEG. There are other therapies with less evidence, including both pharmacological and nonpharmalogical treatments, in the event status epilepticus persists.