Primary prevention
Several causes of childhood epilepsy are potentially preventable, including perinatal insults, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and central nervous system (CNS) infection. Perinatal insult and TBI cause a similar proportion of epilepsies in high-income countries and lower- and middle-income countries, whereas CNS infection is a more common cause in lower- and middle-income countries. Public health measures aimed at preventing epilepsy include maternal and child health care, immunisations, public sanitation, and brain injury prevention.[10]
Secondary prevention
Patients and their families should be comprehensively informed about possible precipitating factors or triggers that could exacerbate seizures, and if possible try to avoid them. Sleep deprivation and alcohol are well-known precipitants of seizures in children with juvenile myoclonic epilepsy and epilepsy with generalised tonic-clonic seizures alone.[7] Precipitating factors vary from one patient to another, and the patient and/or their family and carers need to be aware of these. Examples of triggers include stress, boredom, photosensitivity, tiredness, sudden noise or startle, fever, physical activity, and changes in environmental temperature.[7][31][32]
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