The objective of this paper is to review the terminology about epilepsy used in Brazil, in order to unify terms for lay people and health professionals, hence there is no consensus. Because of the heterogeneity of epilepsy, the term disorder seems to be the more complete regarding scientific and social aspects. The Associação Brasileira de Epilepsia proposes the following definition based on ILAE definition (2005): "Epilepsy is a disorder of the brain characterized by an enduring predisposition to generate epileptic seizures and by the neurobiologic, cognitive, psychological, and social consequences of this condition. The definition of epilepsy requires the occurrence of at least one epileptic seizure". The ABE considers that the terms disease, carrier, epileptic must be outlawed and epilepsy should be considered a disorder, and the individuals that present it, people with epilepsy.
epilepsy; definition; terms utilized in Brazil
