Seizures Due to Frontal Lobe Tumor

Brain tumors can be malignant (cancerous) or benign (noncancerous), but either kind causes a wide variety of serious symptoms, including seizures. Without swift and specific care, the patient can suffer brain damage and, in some cases, death. Tumors can appear in any part of the brain, and frontal lobe tumors have some specific signs and symptoms attributed to them.

Purpose of Frontal Lobes

• As you may have guessed by the name, the frontal lobes are at the very front of the brain. They are considered to be the "emotional control center" of the brain. The frontal lobes are responsible for motor function, problem solving, spontaneity, memory, language, judgment, impulse control, initiation, and social and sexual behavior. The left lobe is responsible for language-related movement, while the right lobe is used for more nonverbal functions.

Brain Tumors and Causes

• Brain tumors can best be described as a mass of cells that grows and expands in the brain over time. No one knows for sure what causes brain tumors, but we do know that they are not contagious and that there are several risk factors. Brain tumors occur in men more often than they do in women. The majority of tumors are discovered in people age 70 and older, yet they are the second most common cancer among children. Tumors occur more often in caucasians than any other race. People with a family history of brain tumors or cancer in general are at a higher risk. Tumors may also be caused by exposure to certain chemicals or radiation.

Seizures and Brain Tumors

• According to neurologychannel.com, seizures occur in 35 percent of brain tumor patients. The patient's likelihood of having a seizure depends on where the tumor is located. Seizures may be partial and only involve a section of the brain; seizures may also involve the entire brain and cause the patient to lose consciousness.

Frontal Lobe Seizures

• Frontal lobe seizures look different from seizures in other parts of the brain, such as the brain stem, cerebellum or temporal lobe. Frontal lobe seizures may start out "silent" and grow as the seizure continues. In addition to seizures, patients may experience one-sided paralysis, short-term memory loss and impaired judgment, as well as personality and mental changes. They may have trouble walking and communicating, and may have an urgent need to urinate. Tumors at the base of the frontal lobe can also cause a loss of smell, impaired vision, and a swollen optic nerve. These patients may rock back and forth and appear to be peddling a bicycle, and they may have explosive laughter or shout profanities.

Signs and Symptoms of Frontal Lobe Tumors

• Since seizures are so common among patients with all kinds of brain tumors, it is important to note the other specific symptoms of frontal lobe tumors. Severe headaches occur in 60-70 percent of all frontal lobe tumor sufferers. Other symptoms include nausea and vomiting, changes in cognitive status, motor and sensory abnormalities.