Does a long seizure burn the brain with its electricity? · Grey Matter

The currents of a seizure are those of ordinary firing neurons and do not heat or burn the tissue.

Does a long seizure burn the brain with its electricity?

The currents of a seizure are those of ordinary firing neurons and do not heat or burn the tissue. When damage happens, it is metabolic and chemical. Neurons driven to fire for many minutes release glutamate continuously, calcium floods in through NMDA and other receptors, and the calcium switches on enzymes that break down membranes, the cytoskeleton and DNA, a process called excitotoxicity. Energy demand outruns supply, mitochondria are strained, free radicals accumulate and cells swell. This is why status epilepticus has a time point, about 30 minutes for convulsive seizures, after which neuronal death becomes likely, while a brief seizure usually leaves no detectable damage.