What causes epilepsy?

Possible causes of epilepsy

In most cases it is not clear why someone has epilepsy.  It is possible that it could be partly genetic as around 1 in 3 people with epilepsy have a family member with it.

Occasionally epilepsy can be caused by damage to the brain such as drug or alcohol misuse or a:

  • Stroke
  • Brain infection such as meningitis
  • Severe head injury
  • Lack of oxygen during birth
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