Generalized seizures involve the whole brain. One form is a convulsion, which results in a complete lack of consciousness. Another form appears to the onlooker like a brief period of fixed staring. Partial seizures are localized in one part of the brain. They may involve voluntary movements or temporary changes in the way things look, taste, sound, feel or smell.
Some partial seizures produce periods of automatic behavior and altered consciousness.
The major form of treatment is long-term drug therapy. Drugs are not a cure and can have numerous, sometimes severe, side effects. Brain surgery is recommended only when medication fails and when the seizures are confined to one area of the brain where brain tissue can be safely removed without damaging personality or function.