US Medical Term · conditions
Epilepsy
Epilepsia
What it means
Epilepsy is a brain disorder that causes people to have recurring seizures. The seizures happen when clusters of nerve cells, or neurons, in the brain send out the wrong signals. People may have strange sensations and emotions or behave strangely, and they may have violent muscle spasms or lose consciousness. A single seizure that does not happen again is not epilepsy. Epilepsy has many possible causes, including illness, brain injury, and abnormal brain development, and in many cases the cause is unknown. Doctors use brain scans and other tests to diagnose it. There is no cure for epilepsy, but medicines can control seizures for most people. MedlinePlus lists seizure disorder among its alternative names for epilepsy.
Epilepsy in Spanish
- Spanish term
- Epilepsia
- Gender and article
- feminine: la epilepsia
- Pronunciation
- eh-pee-LEHP-syah
| Other Spanish terms | Where it is used | Note |
|---|---|---|
| trastorno convulsivo | General | Listed among the alternative names in the MedlinePlus en español encyclopedia article on epilepsy. |
Epilepsia is the word used by MedlinePlus en español and by the Spanish dictionary, and it is feminine: la epilepsia. The dictionary gives it a medical label and defines it as a chronic disease of the nervous system characterized mainly by recurrent spontaneous crisis, convulsive or not, and possible loss of consciousness. Its etymology note says the Greek source word literally means ataque. Where the dictionary writes crisis, MedlinePlus en español writes convulsiones: convulsiones recurrentes, convulsiones repetidas.
The adjective is epiléptico, as in convulsiones epilépticas (epileptic seizures). Other words in the MedlinePlus en español encyclopedia article are aura for the strange sensation some people have before each seizure, ausencias for staring spells, epilepsia hereditaria for seizure disorders that run in families, and idiopática for a cause that is unknown. The topic page writes perder el conocimiento for losing consciousness. The article also states the limit of the term in Spanish: Una sola convulsión que no sucede de nuevo no es epilepsia.
Phrases for an appointment
What a patient or a clinician might say, in English and Spanish:
| Who | English | Spanish |
|---|---|---|
| Patient | I had two seizures this month. | Tuve dos convulsiones este mes. |
| Clinician | Have you been diagnosed with epilepsy? | ¿Le han diagnosticado epilepsia? |
| Patient | Yes, I have had epilepsy since childhood. | Sí, tengo epilepsia desde la infancia. |
| Clinician | Do you feel anything strange before a seizure, such as tingling or a smell? | ¿Siente algo extraño antes de una convulsión, como hormigueo o un olor? |
| Patient | I lost consciousness, and I don't remember what happened. | Perdí el conocimiento y no recuerdo lo que pasó. |
| Clinician | Are you taking your seizure medicine every day? | ¿Está tomando su medicamento para las convulsiones todos los días? |
| Clinician | I am going to order a brain scan and other tests. | Voy a pedirle un estudio cerebral y otras pruebas. |
| Patient | My brother also has epilepsy. Does it run in families? | Mi hermano también tiene epilepsia. ¿Es hereditaria? |
In 9 languages
| Language | Term |
|---|---|
| English | Epilepsy |
| Spanish (Español) | Epilepsia |
| Chinese (中文) | 癲癇 |
| Korean (한국어) | 뇌전증 |
| Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt) | Bệnh động kinh |
| Filipino (Tagalog) | Epilepsy |
| Portuguese (Português) | Epilepsia |
| Thai (ภาษาไทย) | โรคลมชัก |
| Japanese (日本語) | てんかん |
Where you'll see it
Related ICD-10-CM category
ICD-10-CM code: G40 → Epilepsy and recurrent seizuresRelated terms
Your right to an interpreter in the United States
If English is not your primary language and you have difficulty communicating in English, you may need an interpreter or a translated document when you visit a doctor or dentist, go to the emergency room or pick up a prescription. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights states that two federal laws, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, require programs that receive its funding to provide language access services free of charge.
You can ask when you make the appointment or at the front desk: "I need an interpreter, please." «Necesito un intérprete, por favor.»
More terms: Brain and nerves
All terms in this area: Brain and nerves — Cerebro y nervios
Sources
- Epilepsy — MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine
- Epilepsia — MedlinePlus en español, Biblioteca Nacional de Medicina
- Epilepsy (Medical Encyclopedia) — MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine
- Epilepsia (Enciclopedia médica) — MedlinePlus en español, Biblioteca Nacional de Medicina
- epilepsia — Diccionario de la lengua española — Real Academia Española / ASALE
- Limited English Proficiency (LEP): Your Right to Language Assistance Services — U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights
This page is a language reference. It is not medical advice.
Last reviewed: October 8, 2026