Alcohol-Induced Seizures: Why Does Alcohol Cause Seizures

Those with an underlying health risk for seizures, a history of diabetes or who have experienced alcohol withdrawal seizures are most at risk. Most people who drink lightly or even moderately are at low risk of alcohol withdrawal seizures. These seizures are primarily generalized tonic-clonic seizures and can be single episodes or occur in a series. Our systematic data collection based on personal interviews allowed us to provide updated knowledge on the patterns of alcohol drinking and the occurrence of alcohol-related seizures in a large cohort of 310 epilepsy patients. In patients with generalized genetic epilepsy, seizures commonly manifest within 30 min after awakening.

How Do Seizures Occur?

It is possible for chronic alcohol consumption to cause seizures in people without a history of seizures. Continuous data are presented as mean ± standard deviation (SD) or median where appropriate. While alcohol can increase your risk of seizures, everyone’s risk profile differs. Some people may be more susceptible to seizures, while others will be less likely to experience one. People who use alcohol often wonder if alcohol can cause seizures and what the risks are.

• Status epilepticus is a medical emergency that may lead to lasting brain damage or death.
• Between October 2008 and April 2010, consecutive patients treated at the Epilepsy Outpatient Clinic, Department of Neurology, Charité—Universitätsmedizin Berlin were informed about the study and invited to participate.
• Many medications can help prevent seizures; however, these are only used in those with epilepsy or who are likely to have seizures.
• Excessive alcohol consumption may cause seizures, particularly alcohol withdrawal after heavy drinking.
• Apart from this, there is little research on the occurrence of alcohol-related seizures in patients with epilepsy.
• This indicates the potential role of alcohol itself in inducing seizures, rather than the withdrawal state.

The Recovery Village Columbus offers a 5–10 day medical alcohol detox program that ensures seizures are quickly detected and treated during withdrawal. Our program provides comprehensive follow-up care after medical detox to help maintain long-term sobriety. We are also an in-network provider for a range of insurance companies, including Cigna, BCBS and Humana. Alcohol poisoning can also lead to slow or absent breathing, reducing the amount of oxygen in the brain, a condition called hypoxia. This can lead to temporary and lasting brain damage and increase the likelihood of seizures.

Patient with findings of IGE in alcohol related seizure our series was having moderate degree of alcohol related problem. His age was lower compared to mean, had a lower AUDIT score, no withdrawal symptoms and had seizures within the first 6 h following alcohol consumption. No clinical pointers such as recurrent seizure, myoclonus or seizure precipitated by sleep deprivation were present. Short of an EEG, it would have been impossible to identify such a patient in this group.

• People with a history of alcohol misuse seem to have a greater risk of developing sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) than people with epilepsy with no history.
• Alcohol mixed with a depressant can increase the risk of an overdose, which can lead to decreased oxygen levels that can cause seizures.
• A typical alcohol withdrawal seizure is a tonic-clonic seizure (also called a grand-mal seizure).4 This episode involves a loss of consciousness accompanied by violent muscle spasms.
• Out of the 204 patients who used alcohol, 147 (72%) were occasional or light alcohol users, 43 (21.1%) were moderate users and 14 subjects (6.9%) practiced heavier alcohol use.
• Medical professionals often recommend that people with epilepsy avoid or consume a moderate amount of alcohol.

Alcohol-Induced Seizures: Why Does Alcohol Cause Seizures?

The occurrence of alcohol-related seizures was reported by 21.1% of subjects who had used alcohol, and was more often stated by patients with symptomatic than with idiopathic or cryptogenic epilepsy (as classified at that time). Apart from this, there is little research on the occurrence of alcohol-related seizures in patients with epilepsy. A double-blinded, randomized, interventional study on 52 subjects with epilepsy demonstrated that a social alcohol intake over a 4-month-period did not increase seizure frequencies (2). In another interventional study on 14 patients with epilepsy and 10 healthy controls, acute moderate alcohol consumption initially suppressed epileptiform EEG-activity. Later however, when alcohol blood levels had declined, epileptiform EEG-activity was increased. Seizures occurred in some of those subjects and a rebound phenomenon was discussed (3).

Medical Detox for Alcohol Seizures

While other mechanisms of alcohol-related seizures are less clear, reduced blood sugar levels and altered levels of ions in the brain are potential causes. In some people, alcohol can trigger seizures, especially when the effects of alcohol are wearing off or during withdrawal. Seizures may be more likely in people with a seizure disorder, such as epilepsy; however, even those who have never had a seizure can experience one after drinking alcohol.

Effects of Alcohol on Brain Chemistry

Details were only recorded on those alcohol-related seizures that subjects were able to remember the best. As a consequence however, alcohol-related seizures may have also occurred after smaller amounts of alcohol intake or in other circumstances that were not taken into account in the present study. Fifteen out of 95 (15.8%) alcohol-experienced but now abstinent subjects had experienced alcohol-related seizures in the past.

All these factors combine to increase your risk of seizures while using alcohol. Drinking impacts GABA receptors, which have a relaxing influence on the brain. Most of the time, because drinking enhances GABA’s effects, the brain is even more relaxed than normal.

Call 911 and tell the operator you think the person is experiencing an alcohol seizure. Sometimes, those changes are so strong that they disrupt normal electrical communication between cells. According to the Epilepsy Society, consuming alcohol may make your epileptic medications less effective and may make the side effects of your medications worse.

Alcohol-related seizures: Need for clarity

Status epilepticus is a life threatening condition in which a person has a seizure lasting longer than 5 minutes without regaining normal consciousness or has more than one seizure within 5 minutes. This may be due to alcohol’s effect on the brain, sleep, and anti-seizure medications. Assessments help treatment professionals figure out if a problem exists and, if so, determine the diagnosis. They will use multiple assessment tools to get an accurate portrait of your current alcohol misuse, as well as your and your family’s history with alcohol misuse.

When the nervous system is overly depressed, it can lead to conditions that increase the likelihood of seizures when large amounts of alcohol are used. Alcohol-related seizures can happen when people are acutely intoxicated. It can also occur when an alcoholic suddenly stops drinking and experiences alcohol withdrawal. Alcohol withdrawal syndrome is a condition that occurs after an abrupt stopping of heavy drinking in people with alcohol use disorders (AUD). In a 2018 study in which 204 people with epilepsy reported consuming alcohol in the last 12 months, researchers found that seizure worsening related to alcohol consumption was reported in 18.1% of these people.