Earthquakes and epilepsy 'linked'

By TANYA THOMPSON
TECHNIQUES for forecasting earthquakes could also be used to predict
when epilepsy sufferers will have fits, researchers have found.

Scientists in the United States compared brain activity recorded in
epileptic seizures with seismological data.

They discovered striking similarities, notably that the longer the
period since a previous fit or earthquake, the longer until the next
one. And they say, in New Scientist magazine, this shared pattern of
"waiting times" indicates that seizures and quakes may not happen at
random.

The researchers, led by neurologist Ivan Osorio from the University of
Kansas, wrote: "This suggests a novel research direction for the
prediction of seizures based on the notion that seizures beget
seizures."

The study also reveals a similarity between the small tremors that
precede large earthquakes and the tiny spikes in the brain's
electrical activity just before a seizure.

Earthquakes and epileptic fbed by so-called "power laws", often used
to link apparently random events, the scientists showed.

Matthew Walker, of the experimental epilepsy group at University
College London's Institute of Neurology, told New Scientist a proven
way of predicting seizures could "revolutionize" sufferers' lives. But
he cautioned that the US team had not yet shown that its method could
do this.

Epilepsy is a condition in which disturbances in the brain's normal
electrical activity lead to recurring fits or brief episodes of
altered consciousness. One person in 50 will develop epilepsy at some
time in their life.

Allana Parker, from Epilepsy Scotland, said if doctors could predict
seizures, it could minimize the trauma for patients and their families.

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