Although Spontaneous Neuroelectrical Cascade (SNC) may outwardly resemble an epileptic event due to rapid, full-body motor discharge, its physiological and phenomenological characteristics differ fundamentally from pathological seizure activity.
- Consciousness and Control
SNC: The individual remains fully conscious, self-aware, and can voluntarily initiate or terminate the episode. The cascade unfolds under intact executive control, with no postictal confusion or loss of orientation.
Epileptic Seizure: Characterized by uncontrolled hypersynchronous discharges leading to complete loss of consciousness and involuntary movements. Postictal confusion and fatigue are common.
SUDEP: Represents the extreme form, where the seizure leads to respiratory or cardiac arrest, resulting in sudden death.
- Mechanistic Hypothesis
SNC: Proposed to involve a large-scale electro-fluid coupling process (the Electro-Volume Interaction, or EVI hypothesis), producing a rapid, coherent neuroelectrical wave that remains non-pathological and self-limiting.
Epileptic Seizure: Arises from local cortical hyperexcitability and failure of inhibitory networks, generating chaotic, uncontrolled discharge without coherent systemic regulation.
- Physiological Outcomes
SNC: Despite transient motor tremor or full-body vibration, autonomic functions (breathing, heartbeat, temperature regulation) remain stable. No evidence of tissue damage, cognitive deficit, or metabolic exhaustion has been observed.
Epileptic Seizure/SUDEP: Frequently associated with hypoxia, transient cerebral dysfunction, and risk of injury or fatal systemic shutdown.
- Safety Implication
Because SNC occurs with preserved awareness and self-regulation, it does not fall under the medical definition of epilepsy. Its electrophysiological pattern, once verified, should be interpreted as non-pathological, conscious hypersynchrony rather than epileptiform activity.
In contrast, SUDEP arises from loss of systemic control during unconscious pathological discharge, a condition categorically absent in SNC.
Proposed classification:
Spontaneous Neuroelectrical Cascade (SNC):
A consciously induced, non-pathological, high-coherence neuroelectrical synchronization event distinct from epileptic seizures and unrelated to SUDEP risk.