Epilepsy apps

Epilepsy is a common neurological condition – about 1 to 2 in 100 people in New Zealand develop epilepsy at some stage in their life. The main symptom of epilepsy is recurring seizures which affects everyone differently depending on the part of the brain that is involved. Understanding your condition, taking your medicines regularly and maintaining a healthy lifestyle can help you better manage your condition. Read more about epilepsy and living well with epilepsy.

Epilepsy apps can help people living with epilepsy to improve self management of their condition. There are a range of features and functionalities that can be helpful such as:

• Seizure diary so that you can record seizure activity, what happens during them, how often they are occurring, how long they last. 
• Medication reminders to remind you to take your medication at the correct time and remind you when prescriptions need to be refilled.
• Health provider contact information where you can store your doctor’s contact details, emergency contact details, and epilepsy diagnosis information.
• Share information with your healthcare provider: Some apps enable you to print or email reports to your doctor or other members of your healthcare team.

Some apps are designed to detect seizures, mainly tonic-clonic seizures because these seizures involve movement. These apps are usually made up of a sensor and a pager or mobile phone link to let someone know so they can help you. Read more about epilepsy alert devices and aids(external link).

Tips when using epilepsy apps

Do (✔)

• Talk with your healthcare provider about your specific situation. An app can be helpful to keep track of your symptoms or triggers as part of your management plan, but because every person's experience is different, its best to get guidance from your healthcare provider.
• Use an app to keep track of your symptoms as part of your management plan. Use graphs and reporting for a discussion with your healthcare provider.
• Exercise caution when reading information on discussion boards or group chat rooms. Some apps have interactive features, eg, discussion boards or group chat rooms, where users can share their experiences. Be cautious because in most cases these aren't monitored by a health professional so the advice or suggestions may not be safe or effective practice.

Don’t (✘)

• Rely on apps to make a diagnosis of your condition.
• Make changes to your medicines based on the recommendations from the app.