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Antibiotics have been used to prevent and treat these infections however the misuse of antibiotics is a serious problem for global health. It is recommended that guidelines be followed which outline when it is appropriate to give antibiotics and which antibiotics are most effective.
Atelectasis: mild to moderate fever, no changes or mild rales on chest auscultation.
Management: pulmonary exercises, ambulation (deep breathing and walking)
Urinary tract infection : high fever, malaise, costovertebral tenderness, positive urine culture.
Management: antibiotics as per culture sensitivity (cephalosporine).
Endometritis: moderate fever, exquisite uterine tenderness, minimal abdominal findings.
Management: multiple agent IV antibiotics to cover polymicrobial organisms: clindamycin, gentamicin, addition of ampicillin if no response, no cultures are necessary.
Wound infection: persistent spiking fever despite antibiotics, wound erythema or fluctuance, wound drainage.
Management: antibiotics for cellulitis, open and drain wound, saline-soaked packing twice a day, secondary closure.
Septic pelvic thrombophlebitis: persistent wide fever swings despite antibiotics, usually normal abdominal or pelvic exams.
Management: IV heparin for 7–10 days at rates sufficient to prolong the PTT to double the baseline values.
Mastitis: unilateral, localized erythema, edema, tenderness.
Management: antibiotics for cellulitis, open and drain abscess if present.
Smallpox vaccination within three days of exposure will prevent or significantly lessen the severity of smallpox symptoms in the vast majority of people. Vaccination four to seven days after exposure can offer some protection from disease or may modify the severity of disease. Other than vaccination, treatment of smallpox is primarily supportive, such as wound care and infection control, fluid therapy, and possible ventilator assistance. Flat and hemorrhagic types of smallpox are treated with the same therapies used to treat shock, such as fluid resuscitation. People with semi-confluent and confluent types of smallpox may have therapeutic issues similar to patients with extensive skin burns.
No drug is currently approved for the treatment of smallpox. Antiviral treatments have improved since the last large smallpox epidemics, and studies suggest that the antiviral drug cidofovir might be useful as a therapeutic agent. The drug must be administered intravenously, and may cause serious kidney toxicity.
A number of other conditions can cause fevers following delivery including: urinary tract infections, breast engorgement, atelectasis and surgical incisions among others.
There are no specific antiviral drugs for dengue; however, maintaining proper fluid balance is important. Treatment depends on the symptoms. Those who are able to drink, are passing urine, have no "warning signs" and are otherwise healthy can be managed at home with daily follow-up and oral rehydration therapy. Those who have other health problems, have "warning signs", or cannot manage regular follow-up should be cared for in hospital. In those with severe dengue care should be provided in an area where there is access to an intensive care unit.
Intravenous hydration, if required, is typically only needed for one or two days. In children with shock due to dengue a rapid dose of 20 mL/kg is reasonable. The rate of fluid administration is then titrated to a urinary output of 0.5–1 mL/kg/h, stable vital signs and normalization of hematocrit. The smallest amount of fluid required to achieve this is recommended.
Invasive medical procedures such as nasogastric intubation, intramuscular injections and arterial punctures are avoided, in view of the bleeding risk. Paracetamol (acetaminophen) is used for fever and discomfort while NSAIDs such as ibuprofen and aspirin are avoided as they might aggravate the risk of bleeding. Blood transfusion is initiated early in people presenting with unstable vital signs in the face of a "decreasing hematocrit", rather than waiting for the hemoglobin concentration to decrease to some predetermined "transfusion trigger" level. Packed red blood cells or whole blood are recommended, while platelets and fresh frozen plasma are usually not. There is not enough evidence to determine if corticosteroids have a positive or negative effect in dengue fever.
During the recovery phase intravenous fluids are discontinued to prevent a state of fluid overload. If fluid overload occurs and vital signs are stable, stopping further fluid may be all that is needed. If a person is outside of the critical phase, a loop diuretic such as furosemide may be used to eliminate excess fluid from the circulation.
Smoking cessation has been shown to slow the progression of the disease and decrease the severity of amputation in most patients, but does not halt the progression.
In acute cases, drugs and procedures which cause vasodilation are effective in reducing pain experienced by patient. For example, prostaglandins like Limaprost are vasodilators and give relief of pain, but do not help in changing the course of disease. Epidural anesthesia and hyperbaric oxygen therapy also have vasodilator effect.
In chronic cases, lumbar sympathectomy may be occasionally helpful. It reduces vasoconstriction and increases blood flow to limb. It aids in healing and giving relief from pain of ischemic ulcers. Bypass can sometimes be helpful in treating limbs with poor perfusion secondary to this disease. Use of vascular growth factor and stem cell injections have been showing promise in clinical studies. Debridement is done in necrotic ulcers. In gangrenous digits, amputation is frequently required. Above-knee and below-knee amputation is rarely required.
Streptokinase has been proposed as adjuvant therapy in some cases.
Despite the clear presence of inflammation in this disorder, anti-inflammatory agents such as corticosteroids have not been shown to be beneficial in healing, but do have significant anti-inflammatory and pain relief qualities in low dosage intermittent form. Similarly, strategies of anticoagulation have not proven effective.
physical therapy: interferential current therapy to decrease inflammation
Hemicrania continua generally responds only to indomethacin 25–300 mg daily, which must be continued long term. Unfortunately, gastrointestinal side effects are a common problem with indomethacin, which may require additional acid-suppression therapy to control.
In patients who are unable to tolerate indomethacin, the use of celecoxib 400–800 mg per day (Celebrex) and rofecoxib 50 mg per day (Vioxx - no longer available) have both been shown to be effective and are likely to be associated with fewer GI side effects. There have also been reports of two patients who were successfully managed with topiramate 100–200 mg per day (Topamax) although side effects with this treatment can also prove problematic.
Greater Occipital Nerve [GON] block comprising 40 mg Depomedrone and 10mls of 1% Lignocaine injected into the affected nerve is effective, up to a period of approximately three months. Changing the 'cocktail' to include [for example] 10mls of .5% Marcaine and changing to 2% Lignocaine, whilst in theory should increase the longevity, renders the injection completely ineffective. See 4.2 Posology and method of administration [flocculation]
Occipital nerve stimulation may be highly effective when other treatments fail to relieve the intractable pain.
Intravenous metoclopramide or intranasal lidocaine are other potential options. Metoclopramide is the recommended treatment for those who present to the emergency department. Haloperidol may also be useful in this group. A single dose of intravenous dexamethasone, when added to standard treatment of a migraine attack, is associated with a 26% decrease in headache recurrence in the following 72 hours. Spinal manipulation for treating an ongoing migraine headache is not supported by evidence. It is recommended that opioids and barbiturates not be used due to questionable efficacy and the risk of rebound headache.
The "lipofilling" technique consists of sucking fat from the patient using a syringe with a large gauge needle (usually from the abdomen or the outer thighs), then after centrifugation, the fat cells are re-injected beneath the skin into whichever hollow it is needed to fill. This technique is primarily used to correct small defects which may persist after conventional surgical treatment.
Recommended initial treatment for those with mild to moderate symptoms are simple analgesics such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or the combination of paracetamol, aspirin, and caffeine. Several NSAIDs, including diclofenac and ibuprofen have evidence to support their use. Aspirin can relieve moderate to severe migraine pain, with an effectiveness similar to sumatriptan. Ketorolac is available in an intravenous formulation.
Paracetamol (also known as acetaminophen), either alone or in combination with metoclopramide, is another effective treatment with a low risk of adverse effects. Metoclopramide is also effective by itself. In pregnancy, paracetamol and metoclopramide are deemed safe as are NSAIDs until the third trimester.
Mole removal risks mainly depend on the type of mole removal method the patient undergoes. First, mole removal may be followed by some discomfort that can be relieved with pain medication. Second, there is a risk that a scab will form or that redness will occur. However, such scabs and redness usually heal within one or two weeks. Third, as in other surgeries, there is also risk of infection or an anesthetic allergy or even nerve damage. Lastly, the mole removal may imply an uncomfortable scar depending on the mole size.
The chest wall is elastic, gradually stiffening over age. Non-surgical treatments have been developed that aim at gradually alleviating the pectus excavatum condition, making use of the elasticity of the chest wall, including the costal cartilages, in particular in young cases.
First, a diagnosis must be made. If the lesion is a seborrheic keratosis, then shave excision, electrodesiccation or cryosurgery may be performed, usually leaving very little if any scarring. If the lesion is suspected to be a skin cancer, a skin biopsy must be done first, before considering removal. This is unless an excisional biopsy is warranted. If the lesion is a melanocytic nevus, one has to decide if it is medically indicated or not
If a melanocytic nevus is suspected of being a melanoma, it needs to be sampled or removed and sent for microscopic evaluation by a pathologist by a method called skin biopsy. One can do a complete excisional skin biopsy or a punch skin biopsy, depending on the size and location of the original nevus. Other reasons for removal may be cosmetic, or because a raised mole interferes with daily life (e.g. shaving). Removal can be by excisional biopsy or by shaving. A shaved site leaves a red mark on the site which returns to the patient’s usual skin color in about two weeks. However, there might still be a risk of spread of the melanoma, so the methods of Melanoma diagnosis, including excisional biopsy, are still recommended even in these instances. Additionally, moles can be removed by laser, surgery or electrocautery.
In properly trained hands, some medical lasers are used to remove flat moles level with the surface of the skin, as well as some raised moles. While laser treatment is commonly offered and may require several appointments, other dermatologists think lasers are not the best method for removing moles because the laser only cauterizes or, in certain cases, removes very superficial levels of skin. Moles tend to go deeper into the skin than non-invasive lasers can penetrate. After a laser treatment a scab is formed, which falls off about seven days later, in contrast to surgery, where the wound has to be sutured. A second concern about the laser treatment is that if the lesion is a melanoma, and was misdiagnosed as a benign mole, the procedure might delay diagnosis. If the mole is incompletely removed by the laser, and the pigmented lesion regrows, it might form a recurrent nevus.
Electrocautery is available as an alternative to laser cautery. Electrocautery is a procedure that uses a light electrical current to burn moles, skin tags, and warts off the skin. Electric currents are set to a level such that they only reach the outermost layers of the skin, thus reducing the problem of scarring. Approximately 1-3 treatments may be needed to completely remove a mole. Typically, a local anesthetic is applied to the treated skin area before beginning the mole removal procedure.
For surgery, many dermatologic and plastic surgeons first use a freezing solution, usually liquid nitrogen, on a raised mole and then shave it away with a scalpel. If the surgeon opts for the shaving method, he or she usually also cauterizes the stump. Because a circle is difficult to close with stitches, the incision is usually elliptical or eye-shaped. However, freezing should not be done to a nevus suspected to be a melanoma, as the ice crystals can cause pathological changes called "freezing artifacts" which might interfere with the diagnosis of the melanoma.
The earliest procedure used to prevent smallpox was inoculation (known as variolation after the introduction of smallpox vaccine to avoid possible confusion), which likely occurred in India, Africa, and China well before the practice arrived in Europe. The idea that inoculation originated in India has been challenged, as few of the ancient Sanskrit medical texts described the process of inoculation. Accounts of inoculation against smallpox in China can be found as early as the late 10th century, and the procedure was widely practiced by the 16th century, during the Ming dynasty. If successful, inoculation produced lasting immunity to smallpox. Because the person was infected with variola virus, a severe infection could result, and the person could transmit smallpox to others. Variolation had a 0.5–2 percent mortality rate, considerably less than the 20–30 percent mortality rate of the disease. Two reports on the Chinese practice of inoculation were received by the Royal Society in London in 1700; one by Dr. Martin Lister who received a report by an employee of the East India Company stationed in China and another by Clopton Havers.
Lady Mary Wortley Montagu observed smallpox inoculation during her stay in the Ottoman Empire, writing detailed accounts of the practice in her letters, and enthusiastically promoted the procedure in England upon her return in 1718. In 1721, Cotton Mather and colleagues provoked controversy in Boston by inoculating hundreds. In 1796, Edward Jenner, a doctor in Berkeley, Gloucestershire, rural England, discovered that immunity to smallpox could be produced by inoculating a person with material from a cowpox lesion. Cowpox is a poxvirus in the same family as variola. Jenner called the material used for inoculation vaccine, from the root word "vacca", which is Latin for cow. The procedure was much safer than variolation, and did not involve a risk of smallpox transmission. Vaccination to prevent smallpox was soon practiced all over the world. During the 19th century, the cowpox virus used for smallpox vaccination was replaced by vaccinia virus. Vaccinia is in the same family as cowpox and variola, but is genetically distinct from both. The origin of vaccinia virus and how it came to be in the vaccine are not known. According to Voltaire (1742), the Turks derived their use of inoculation to neighbouring Circassia. Voltaire does not speculate on where the Circassians derived their technique from, though he reports that the Chinese have practiced it "these hundred years".
The current formulation of smallpox vaccine is a live virus preparation of infectious vaccinia virus. The vaccine is given using a bifurcated (two-pronged) needle that is dipped into the vaccine solution. The needle is used to prick the skin (usually the upper arm) a number of times in a few seconds. If successful, a red and itchy bump develops at the vaccine site in three or four days. In the first week, the bump becomes a large blister (called a "Jennerian vesicle") which fills with pus, and begins to drain. During the second week, the blister begins to dry up and a scab forms. The scab falls off in the third week, leaving a small scar.
The antibodies induced by vaccinia vaccine are cross-protective for other orthopoxviruses, such as monkeypox, cowpox, and variola (smallpox) viruses. Neutralizing antibodies are detectable 10 days after first-time vaccination, and seven days after revaccination. Historically, the vaccine has been effective in preventing smallpox infection in 95 percent of those vaccinated. Smallpox vaccination provides a high level of immunity for three to five years and decreasing immunity thereafter. If a person is vaccinated again later, immunity lasts even longer. Studies of smallpox cases in Europe in the 1950s and 1960s demonstrated that the fatality rate among persons vaccinated less than 10 years before exposure was 1.3 percent; it was 7 percent among those vaccinated 11 to 20 years prior, and 11 percent among those vaccinated 20 or more years prior to infection. By contrast, 52 percent of unvaccinated persons died.
There are side effects and risks associated with the smallpox vaccine. In the past, about 1 out of 1,000 people vaccinated for the first time experienced serious, but non-life-threatening, reactions, including toxic or allergic reaction at the site of the vaccination (erythema multiforme), spread of the vaccinia virus to other parts of the body, and to other individuals. Potentially life-threatening reactions occurred in 14 to 500 people out of every 1 million people vaccinated for the first time. Based on past experience, it is estimated that 1 or 2 people in 1 million (0.000198 percent) who receive the vaccine may die as a result, most often the result of postvaccinial encephalitis or severe necrosis in the area of vaccination (called progressive vaccinia).
Given these risks, as smallpox became effectively eradicated and the number of naturally occurring cases fell below the number of vaccine-induced illnesses and deaths, routine childhood vaccination was discontinued in the United States in 1972, and was abandoned in most European countries in the early 1970s. Routine vaccination of health care workers was discontinued in the U.S. in 1976, and among military recruits in 1990 (although military personnel deploying to the Middle East and Korea still receive the vaccination). By 1986, routine vaccination had ceased in all countries. It is now primarily recommended for laboratory workers at risk for occupational exposure.
The use of a seven-way clostridial vaccination is the most common, cheapest, and efficacious preventative measure taken against blackleg. Burning the upper layer of soil to eradicate left-over spores is the best way to stop the spread of blackleg from diseased cattle. Diseased cattle should be isolated. Treatment is generally unrewarding due to the rapid progression of the disease, but penicillin is the drug of choice for treatment. Treatment is only effective in the early stages and as a control measure.
Dr. Oliver Morris (O.M.) Franklin made a significant contribution to the welfare of cattle and the livestock industry with his development of the blackleg vaccine. Franklin developed the original method of giving the vaccine while at Kansas State Agriculture College using live cattle. Franklin and another graduate veterinarian founded the original Kansas Blackleg Serum Co. in Wichita in 1916.
The nature of the injury varies depending on the size and location of the fistula, so a surgeon with experience is needed to improvise on the spot. Before the person undergoes surgery, treatment and evaluation are needed for conditions including anemia, malnutrition, and malaria. Quality treatment in low-resource settings are possible (as in the cases of Nigeria and Ethiopia).
Treatment is available through reconstructive surgery. Primary fistula repair has a 91% success rate. The corrective surgery costs about US$100 – 400, and the cost for the entire procedure, which includes the actual surgery, postoperative care, and rehabilitation support, is estimated to cost $300–450. Initial surgeries done by inadequately trained doctors and midwives increase the number of follow-up surgeries that must be performed to restore full continence. Successful surgery enables women to live normal lives and have more children, but it is recommended to have a cesarean section to prevent the fistula from recurring. Postoperative care is vital to prevent infection. Some women are not candidates for this surgery due to other health problems. In those cases, fecal diversion can help the patient, but not necessarily cure them.
Besides physical treatment, mental health services are also needed to rehabilitate fistula patients, who experience psychological trauma from being ostracized by the community and from fear of developing fistulae again. A study on the first formal counseling program for fistula survivors in Eritrea shows positive results, whereby counseling significantly improved the women's self-esteem, knowledge about fistulae and fistula prevention, and behavioral intentions for "health maintenance and social reintegration" following surgery.
The use of orthotic bracing, pioneered by Sydney Haje as of 1977, is finding increasing acceptance as an alternative to surgery in select cases of pectus carinatum. In children, teenagers, and young adults who have pectus carinatum and are motivated to avoid surgery, the use of a customized chest-wall brace that applies direct pressure on the protruding area of the chest produces excellent outcomes. Willingness to wear the brace as required is essential for the success of this treatment approach. The brace works in much the same way as orthodontics (braces that correct the alignment of teeth). The brace consists of front and back compression plates that are anchored to aluminum bars. These bars are bound together by a tightening mechanism which varies from brace to brace. This device is easily hidden under clothing and must be worn from 14 to 24 hours a day. The wearing time varies with each brace manufacturer and the managing physicians protocol, which could be based on the severity of the carinatum malformation (mild moderate severe) and if it is symmetric or asymmetric.
Depending on the manufacturer and/or the patient's preference, the brace may be worn on the skin or it may be worn over a body 'sock' or sleeve called a Bracemate, specifically designed to be worn under braces. A physician or orthotist or brace manufacturer's representative can show how to check to see if the brace is in correct position on the chest.
Bracing is becoming more popular over surgery for pectus carinatum, mostly because it eliminates the risks that accompany surgery. The prescribing of bracing as a treatment for pectus carinatum has 'trickled down' from both paediatric and thoracic surgeons to the family physician and pediatricians again due to its lower risks and well-documented very high success results. The pectus carinatum guideline of 2012 of the American Pediatric Surgical Association has stated: "As reconstructive therapy for the compliant pectus [carinatum] malformation, nonoperative compressive orthotic bracing is usually an appropriate first line of therapy as it does not preclude the operative option. For appropriate candidates, orthotic bracing of chest wall malformations can reasonably be expected to prevent worsening of the malformation and often results in a lasting correction of the malformation. Orthotic bracing is often successful in prepubertal children whose chest wall is compliant. Expert opinion suggests that the noncompliant chest wall malformation or significant asymmetry of the pectus carinatum malformation caused by a concomitant excavatum-type malformation may not respond to orthotic bracing."
Regular supervision during the bracing period is required for optimal results. Adjustments may be needed to the brace as the child grows and the pectus improves.
The cause of the disease is thought to be autoimmune in nature and heavily linked to tobacco use in patients with Buerger's as primary disease.
Palliative care is medical care which focuses on treatment of symptoms from serious illness, like cancer, and improving quality of life. Palliative care is recommended for any person who has advanced colon cancer or has significant symptoms.
Involvement of palliative care may be beneficial to improve the quality of life for both the person and his or her family, by improving symptoms, anxiety and preventing admissions to the hospital.
In people with incurable colorectal cancer, palliative care can consist of procedures that relieve symptoms or complications from the cancer but do not attempt to cure the underlying cancer, thereby improving quality of life. Surgical options may include non-curative surgical removal of some of the cancer tissue, bypassing part of the intestines, or stent placement. These procedures can be considered to improve symptoms and reduce complications such as bleeding from the tumor, abdominal pain and intestinal obstruction. Non-operative methods of symptomatic treatment include radiation therapy to decrease tumor size as well as pain medications.
While a combination of radiation and chemotherapy may be useful for rectal cancer, its use in colon cancer is not routine due to the sensitivity of the bowels to radiation. Just as for chemotherapy, radiotherapy can be used in the neoadjuvant and adjuvant setting for some stages of rectal cancer.
Challenges with regards to treatment include the very high number of women needing reconstructive surgery, access to facilities and trained surgeons, and the cost of treatment. For many women, US$300 is an impossible price and they cannot afford the surgery. Access and availability of treatment also vary widely across different sub-Saharan countries. Certain regions also do not have enough maternal care clinics that are equipped, willing to treat fistula patients, and adequately staffed. At the Evangelical Hospital of Bemberéke in Benin, only one expatriate volunteer obstetrics and gynecology doctor is available a few months per year, with one certified nurse and seven informal hospital workers. In all of Niger, two medical centers treat fistula patients. In Nigeria, more dedicated health professionals operate on up to 1,600 women with a fistula per year. The world is currently severely under capacity for treating the problem; it would take up to 400 years to treat the backlog of patients. To prevent any new cases of obstetric fistulae, about 75,000 new emergency obstetric care facilities would have to be built in Africa alone, plus an increase in financial support and an even higher number of certified doctors, midwives, and nurses needed.
Another challenge standing between women and fistula treatment is information. Most women have no idea that treatment is available. Because this is a condition of shame and embarrassment, most women hide themselves and their condition and suffer in silence. In addition, after receiving initial treatment, health education is important to prevent fistulae in subsequent pregnancies.
Another challenge is the lack of trained professionals to provide surgery for fistula patients. As a result, nonphysicians are sometimes trained to provide obstetric services. For example, the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital has medical staff without formal degrees, and one of its top surgeons was illiterate, but she had been trained over years and now regularly successfully performs fistula surgery.
For patients with severe pectus carinatum, surgery may be necessary. However bracing could and may still be the first line of treatment. Some severe cases treated with bracing may result in just enough improvement that patient is happy with the outcome and may not want surgery afterwards.
If bracing should fail for whatever reason then surgery would be the next step. The two most common procedures are the Ravitch technique and the Reverse Nuss procedure.
A modified Ravitch technique uses bioabsorbable material and postoperative bracing, and in some cases a diced rib cartilage graft technique.
The Nuss was developed by Donald Nuss at the Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters in Norfolk, Va. The Nuss is primarily used for Pectus Excavatum, but has recently been revised for use in some cases of PC, primarily when the malformation is symmetrical.
Prevention depends on control of and protection from the bites of the mosquito that transmits it. The World Health Organization recommends an Integrated Vector Control program consisting of five elements:
1. Advocacy, social mobilization and legislation to ensure that public health bodies and communities are strengthened;
2. Collaboration between the health and other sectors (public and private);
3. An integrated approach to disease control to maximize use of resources;
4. Evidence-based decision making to ensure any interventions are targeted appropriately; and
5. Capacity-building to ensure an adequate response to the local situation.
The primary method of controlling "A. aegypti" is by eliminating its habitats. This is done by getting rid of open sources of water, or if this is not possible, by adding insecticides or biological control agents to these areas. Generalized spraying with organophosphate or pyrethroid insecticides, while sometimes done, is not thought to be effective. Reducing open collections of water through environmental modification is the preferred method of control, given the concerns of negative health effects from insecticides and greater logistical difficulties with control agents. People can prevent mosquito bites by wearing clothing that fully covers the skin, using mosquito netting while resting, and/or the application of insect repellent (DEET being the most effective). However, these methods appear not to be sufficiently effective, as the frequency of outbreaks appears to be increasing in some areas, probably due to urbanization increasing the habitat of "A. aegypti". The range of the disease appears to be expanding possibly due to climate change.
Bacterial and fungal infections are common in ALF, with one study demonstrating culture-proven infection in 80% of ALF patients. Defective cellular and humoral immunity as well as presence of indwelling catheters, coma, broad-spectrum antibiotics, and medications that suppress immunity all predispose to infection. Localizing symptoms of infection such as fever and sputum production are frequently absent and the only clues to an underlying infectious process may be worsening of encephalopathy or renal function. There must be a low threshold for obtaining frequent cultures (blood, urine, and sputum), chest radiographs, and paracentesis. Bacteria that enter through the skin, such as streptococci and staphylococci, tend to predominate. Aggressive surveillance is essential as prophylactic antibiotics have shown little benefit. Fungal infections, particularly in the setting of broad-spectrum antibiotics, are also common, and disseminated fungemia is a poor prognostic sign.
Alternative medicine, including acupuncture, psychological interventions, routine vitamins, and yoga, have no reliable evidence to support their use in epilepsy. There is not enough evidence to support the use of cannabis. Melatonin, as of 2016, is insufficiently supported by evidence. The trials were of poor methodological quality and it was not possible to draw any definitive conclusions.
Avoidance therapy consists of minimizing or eliminating triggers. For example, in those who are sensitive to light, using a small television, avoiding video games, or wearing dark glasses may be useful. Operant-based biofeedback based on the EEG waves has some support in those who do not respond to medications. Psychological methods should not, however, be used to replace medications. Some dogs, commonly referred to as seizure dogs, may help during or after a seizure. It is not clear if dogs have the ability to predict seizures before they occur.