Epilepsy is a general term covering a variety of conditions in which seizures occur.
Seizures vary from small absence seizures, where the person is unresponsive for a few seconds or minutes, to generalized seizures, with possible falling, convulsions and repetitive behavior. Repeated seizures do not have lasting effects on the brain for the most part. Fortunately, nowadays the stigma of epilepsy is slowly being overcome as it is recognized that most people with epilepsy are otherwise completely normal, with intellectual and functional capabilities largely intact. Even so, if seizures are not controlled, the patients and their families suffer considerably because of the effects of seizures on schooling and job training, on their ability to hold a job, and on their social lives, including restrictions on driving a car and sports. Epilepsy may mean the patient is harboring a brain tumor or vascular malformation.