Status epilepticus is a life threatening condition in which a person has a seizure lasting longer than 5 minutes without regaining normal consciousness or has more than one seizure within 5 minutes. Over half of those with alcohol withdrawal seizures may have repeat seizures, and up to 5% of cases may lead to status epilepticus. Unprovoked seizures that occur more than 48 hours after a person’s last drink may be due to another cause, such as head injury or withdrawal from other drugs. Over 50% of alcohol withdrawal seizures may relate to additional risk factors, such as preexisting epilepsy, structural brain lesions, or drug use. The authors report that over 90% of alcohol withdrawal seizures occur within 48 hours after the last drink. Seizures may occur in around 5% of people with alcohol withdrawal syndrome.Īccording to a 2017 article, alcohol withdrawal seizures in those without epilepsy may occur 6–48 hours after a person consumes their last alcoholic drink. When people stop consuming alcohol after chronic use, they lose the inhibitory effects of the GABA receptors, resulting in the central nervous system being overstimulated.Īccording to older research, alcohol consumption may have a causal relationship with seizures, and people who drink 200 g or more of alcohol daily may have up to a 20-fold increase in seizure risk.Ī person with epilepsy should speak with their doctor to determine how much alcohol, if any, is safe to consume with their condition.Īlcohol-related seizures in those with epilepsy mostly occur due to alcohol withdrawal rather than the act of drinking itself. Inhibitory neurotransmitters prevent certain chemical messages from passing on. This can happen after someone who has misused alcohol for a long time stops consuming it.Īlcohol works as a depressant on the central nervous system and alters the function of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors.

It is also possible to experience seizures as a result of alcohol withdrawal. It is possible for chronic alcohol consumption to cause seizures in people without a history of seizures.Īccording to the Epilepsy Foundation, some studies have linked chronic alcohol misuse to the development of epilepsy. Alcohol-related seizures in people without epilepsy

Nocturnal epilepsy alcohol