A question for my friends at ATS....

I have recently been dealing with "epileptic siezures" while staying with my parents in dallas....this week we found out that the hot water heater next to my room has been leaking carbon monoxide.

I was wondering could carbon monoxide poisoning possibly be confused with epilepsy?

Signs and symptoms[edit]

Carbon monoxide is toxic to all aerobic forms of life. It is easily absorbed through the lungs.[5] Inhaling even relatively small amounts of the gas can lead to hypoxic injury, neurological damage, and even death. Different people and populations may have a different carbon monoxide tolerance levels.[6] On average, exposures at 100 ppm or greater is dangerous to human health.[1] In the United States, the OSHA limits long-term workplace exposure levels to less than 50 ppm averaged over an 8-hour period;[7][8] in addition, employees are to be removed from any confined space if an upper limit ("ceiling") of 100 ppm is reached.[9] Carbon monoxide exposure may lead to a significantly shorter life span due to heart damage.[10] The carbon monoxide tolerance level for any person is altered by several factors, including activity level, rate of ventilation, a pre-existing cerebral or cardiovascular disease, cardiac output, anemia, sickle cell disease and other hematological disorders, barometric pressure, and metabolic rate.[11][12][13]
The acute effects produced by carbon monoxide in relation to ambient concentration in parts per million are listed below:[14][15]
Concentration Symptoms
35 ppm (0.0035%) Headache and dizziness within six to eight hours of constant exposure
100 ppm (0.01%) Slight headache in two to three hours
200 ppm (0.02%) Slight headache within two to three hours; loss of judgment
400 ppm (0.04%) Frontal headache within one to two hours
800 ppm (0.08%) Dizziness, nausea, and convulsions within 45 min; insensible within 2 hours
1,600 ppm (0.16%) Headache, tachycardia, dizziness, and nausea within 20 min; death in less than 2 hours
3,200 ppm (0.32%) Headache, dizziness and nausea in five to ten minutes. Death within 30 minutes.
6,400 ppm (0.64%) Headache and dizziness in one to two minutes. Convulsions, respiratory arrest, and death in less than 20 minutes.
12,800 ppm (1.28%) Unconsciousness after 2–3 breaths. Death in less than three minutes.

From wikipedia.
link

Not all seizures are considered to be epilepsy. Everyone has their own Seizure Threshold:

This concept holds that everyone has a certain balance (probably genetically determined) between excitatory and inhibitory forces in the brain. The relative proportions of each determine whether a person has a low threshold for seizures (because of the higher excitatory balance) or a high threshold (because of greater inhibition). According to this view, a low seizure threshold makes it easier for epilepsy to develop, and easier for someone to experience a single seizure.

Carbon monoxide binds to your hemoglobin which decreases the amount of oxygen that your cells can carry. Your brain becomes hypoxic in those circumstances which can trigger seizures. Some people are very sensitive to hypoxemia and will have seizures 'more easily' than others generally will.

I hope you have access to a physician who can evaluate your seizures to rule out any other causes/disorders that also cause seizures. With my youngest son, they ordered an MRI and an EEG to ensure that his seizures (only two that we witnessed) were not caused by an underlying disorder after he had syncopal episodes.

Shark_Feeder
I have recently been dealing with "epileptic siezures" while staying with my parents in dallas....this week we found out that the hot water heater next to my room has been leaking carbon monoxide.

I was wondering could carbon monoxide poisoning possibly be confused with epilepsy?

Possibly. Just in case though I'd definitely go on a Ketogenic diet in meantime as it greatly reduces epileptic seizures.

www.charliefoundation.org...

That site is dedicated to pediatric epilepsy but the diet works for adults as well.

www.epilepsy.com...

They also sell CO detectors on Amazon and other places for like 25 bucks. The ones in that price range actually give you the PPM.

Seizures can be caused by low oxygen levels which could fit in with an increase of the carbon monoxide, especially if you were close to the source. (Unlike carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide isn't heavier than air so will permeate the surrounding air relatively evenly).
It would be pretty unusual to have these seizures though, generally you would "just" feel tired, have headaches, feel nauseous etc.
Still, as has been said, the CO could certainly be a precipitant for these seizures so rather than go on any ketogenic diets (sledgehammer to crack a nut a this stage I think!) I would suggest you get thoroughly checked out by a neurologist.

All the best.

A deficiency in vitamin D, A, magnesium, zinc and calcium can also lead to seizures.

Morton makes a good Epsom salt lotion for the magnesium, use it topically.

reply to post by toastyr

Absolutely! I believe that medics used to give women who were suffering seizures caused by toxamia in pregnancy magnesium IV s which stopped seizures rapidly.

Get your bloods checked by a doctor if you can.