University of Washington Regional Epilepsy Center at Harborview Medical Center

Classification of Seizures

(table approved by the International League Against Epilepsy)

Nomenclature of the International Classification of Epileptic Seizures	Traditional nomenclature
I. Partial Seizures (seizures beginning locally)	.
A. simple partial seizures (without impaired consciousness)	.
1. With motor symptoms	Focal motor seizures
2. With somatosensory or special sensory symptoms	Focal sensory seizures
3. With autonomic symptoms	.
4. With psychic symptoms	Temporal lobe seizures
B. complex partial seizures (with impaired consciousness)	.
1. with impaired consciousness only	(often confused with absence, or petit mal seizures*)
2. with automatisms	Psychomotor seizures; temporal lobe seizures
C. Partial seizures	.
1. secondarily generalized	focal seizures progressing to grand mal (major motor) seizures, such as Jacksonian seizures
II. Generalized seizures	.
A. Absence seizures	petit mal seizures
B. Generalized tonic-clonic seizures	grand mal seizures; major motor seizures
C. Myoclonic seizures	myoclonic seizures; minor motor seizures
D. Akinetic seizures	akinetic seizures;minor motor seizures
E. Atonic seizures	atonic seizures; minor motor seizures
F. Tonic Seizures	tonic seizures
G. Clonic seizures	clonic seizures
III. Unclassified seizures	.