| Infantile spasms also called West syndrome. Infantile | | | | The standard pattern of infantile spasms features |
| spasms are an uncommon to rare and grave form of | | | | minor head bobbing. Eventually, the child starts to have |
| epilepsy in infants. About 60% of the affected infants | | | | flexor, extensor, or mixed spasms. Flexor spasms are |
| have some brain disorder or brain injury before the | | | | the most common. The child’s neck, arms, and legs |
| seizures begin, but the others have had no apparent | | | | draw towards his chest. The child frequently bends at |
| injury and have been developing normally. Infantile | | | | the waist in a “jackknife” motion. Extensor |
| spasm (IS) is a specific type of seizure seen in an | | | | spasms are the least common. The child’s neck, |
| epilepsy syndrome of infancy. The syndrome is | | | | arms, and legs stretch out. Mixed spasms, in which the |
| age-related, generally occurring between the third and | | | | child’s arms and body contract and his legs stretch |
| the twelfth month, generally manifesting around the | | | | out, are also very common. The goals of treatment for |
| fifth month. The syndrome is often caused by an | | | | infants with West syndrome are the best quality of life |
| organic brain dysfunction whose origins may be | | | | with no seizures, the fewest adverse effects from |
| prenatal, perinatal or postnatal. | | | | treatment, and the least number of medications. |
| Eighty-five percent of kids who increase infantile | | | | Steroid therapy is the first treatment for infantile |
| spasms do so before the age of twelve months; most | | | | spasms. Antiepileptic medications, such as vigabatrin |
| end having spasms by age 5. During this period, 40 | | | | (currently not approved for use in the US) have shown |
| percent will have other types of seizures. It is likely that | | | | some efficacy. Sabril is often used as the initial therapy |
| one child in every 2,200 to 4,500 children born will grow | | | | because it is relatively secure and helpful. It is especially |
| infantile spasms. More boys than girls develop infantile | | | | effective for children with tuberous sclerosis (a |
| spasms, but the figures vary. Bio-chemical mechanisms | | | | disorder associated with abnormalities involving the |
| lead to the occurrence of West syndrome. It is | | | | brain, skin, heart, and other parts of the body). If the |
| conjectured that it is a malfunction of the | | | | seizures are caused by a focal brain abnormality such |
| neurotransmitter function, or more precisely, a | | | | as a tumour or a cyst, surgery to remove the |
| malfunction in the regulation of the GABA transmission | | | | abnormality. The ketogenic diet has been employed |
| process. | | | | successfully to treat a variety of seizure types. |