Provoked Seizure

[Help]

Evening all,

I was recently (in the last few months) in a fairly serious accident which left me with a broken leg and a mild TBI. I was taken via ambulance to hospital and while being taken in for some scans experienced a single seizure. I was kept in the hospital for monitoring for several days and had an EEG done in hospital. I have gone through the whole process with my neuro and he has diagnosed this as a single provoked seizure due to the accident. (The hospital EEG came back ‘borderline’ so he sent me for a 24 hour ambulatory EEG which came back clean.) He is weaning me off Keppra now. He has cleared me to drive again.

Does anyone have any idea where I stand with my medical at this point? I know I need to not be taking Keppra before I can fly, but I’m not sure what’s next. My medical isn’t due until later in the year. I don’t want to open a can of worms by asking my AME, but I can’t find a clear answer as to what I should be doing for a provoked single seizure.

If the answer is that my medical can’t be used, can I use basic med?

Thanks in advance for any help which can be given!

 

[TCABM]

@bbchien is probably the person to talk to.

 

[AggieMike88]

Evening all,

I was recently (in the last few months) in a fairly serious accident which left me with a broken leg and a mild TBI. I was taken via ambulance to hospital and while being taken in for some scans experienced a single seizure. I was kept in the hospital for monitoring for several days and had an EEG done in hospital. I have gone through the whole process with my neuro and he has diagnosed this as a single provoked seizure due to the accident. (The hospital EEG came back ‘borderline’ so he sent me for a 24 hour ambulatory EEG which came back clean.) He is weaning me off Keppra now. He has cleared me to drive again.

Does anyone have any idea where I stand with my medical at this point? I know I need to not be taking Keppra before I can fly, but I’m not sure what’s next. My medical isn’t due until later in the year. I don’t want to open a can of worms by asking my AME, but I can’t find a clear answer as to what I should be doing for a provoked single seizure.

If the answer is that my medical can’t be used, can I use basic med?

Thanks in advance for any help which can be given!

If you ask an AME under the auspices of the visit being a consultation, there are no canned worms anywhere in the office.

You are there as a patient asking an experienced doctor for his opinion, advice, and guidance. Doctor Patient privilege applies. The doctor is working on your behalf, not for the FAA.

All that said, choosing the proper challenging case AME will have the most benefit. Someone who has a hangar full of been there done that, seen it, successfully got the airman his certificate” T-shirts.

Even better if they are a pilot who can have empathy for why you want to retain your medical and get back into the skies.

Anyhow, I hope all is well now and your back to your normal skallywag self.

 

[bflynn]

If the answer is that my medical can’t be used, can I use basic med?

Would your seizure be classified as “a transient loss of control of nervous system functions without satisfactory medical explanation of the cause”? That would be the trigger that would push you into an SI instead of BasicMed.

 

[Clip4]

He never had seizures before the accident, his doctor says it was caused by the accident, that sounds like satisfactory medical explanation of the cause.

 

[AchillesLastStand]

Mild TBI is a minimum 6 month waiting period, from what I understand. Due to the seizure and seizure meds, it might be a more involved process. I had a TBI as well, and I have to turn in a current MRI, cognitive testing, EEG and neuro exam.

Find a neurologist that knows the FAA process. There are a few out there. I can’t stress that enough! Your records will go to the neurology panel, so it’s crucial that you consult with people that know exactly what will be needed!

 

[skier]

Personally, after my TBI I decided it wasn’t worth pursuing a 3rd class medical anymore. I haven’t flown much since then (nothing to do with the incident), but if I ever do start flying as PIC again it will be via basic med or sport pilot.

 

[Lindberg]

If the answer is that my medical can’t be used, can I use basic med?

These are the types of neurological conditions that require a one-time SI before using BasicMed:

• Epilepsy;
• Disturbance of consciousness without satisfactory medical explanation of the cause; or
• A transient loss of control of nervous system functions without satisfactory medical explanation of the cause.

That's direct from the FAA here: https://www.faa.gov/licenses_certificates/airmen_certification/basic_med/

Because of the nature of BasicMed, that determination will be made in the first instance by you and your doctor. You'll also need to be recovered and healthy enough to fly safely.

 

[bbchien]

Provided the record shows no LOC or "stunning" for less than 1 hour, you need a neurologist evaluation with EEG awake and asleep; Hopefully there is no mention of (1) cognitive dysfunction nor (2) any blood in the CT/MRI, beucase if there is (1) FAA's neurocog evaluation and fr #2 (2)Federal External consultant review (the Neuro Committee).

6 months down if no seizures.
You may be requried to be 2 years off seizure free wile off anticonvulsant medication, depending on 1, and 2.

It's much worse if there was blood on the brain (on Scan).