To have episodes

Jane is a 7year old prep student from Melbourne whose teacher has noticed that she seems to
have episodes where she is ‘blanking out’ – she abruptly stops all activity for about 10
seconds, followed by a rapid return to full consciousness.

Jane’s eyes are open during the
episodes and she remains motionless except for occasional small hand movements. She is
subsequently diagnosed with epilepsy.
a. Describe the type of epilepsy Jane appears to be suffering from.

b. What is occurring in her brain when she is suffering a seizure?

c. Jane suffered a febrile seizure at 6 months old; discuss this in terms of her current
diagnosis.

Jane is prescribed ethosuximide.
d. Describe mechanism of action, pharmacokinetics and adverse effects