Epilepsy - disturbance of function of the brain, described repeated spontaneous attacks and accompanied various clinical and paraclinic signs.

Etiology, pathogenesis. In a parentage of an epilepsy plays a role a combination of predisposition and an organic lesion of a brain (disturbance of fetal development, mechanical damages at sorts, infections, a craniocerebral trauma, etc.). In this connection separation of an epilepsy on so-called "genuinical" (genetically caused) and "symptomatic" (result of an organic lesion of a brain) is inexpedient.

The epileptic attack is caused by diffusion of excessive neuronic categories from the center of epileptic activity on all brain or its part (a partial attack). The epileptic center can arise for short time at acute diseases of a brain, for example at disturbances of a cerebral circulation, meningitises that is accompanied by so-called casual epileptic attacks. At chronically current cerebral diseases (a tumour, parasitogenic diseases, etc.) the epileptic center more proof, that conducts to occurrence of repeating attacks (an epileptic syndrome).