Risk of post-traumatic epilepsy after severe head injury in patients with at least one seizure

• Published in: Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment 2017-01, Vol.13, p.2301-2306
• Main Authors: Chen, Wei, Li, Ming-De, Wang, Gui-Fang, Yang, Xia-Feng, Liu, Lin, Meng, Fan-Gang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Brain injuries; Care and treatment; Complications and side effects; Convulsions & seizures; Electroencephalography; Epidemiology; Epilepsy; Head injuries; Medical prognosis; Medical records; Medical research; Neurology; Neurosurgery; NMR; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Original Research; Patient outcomes; Patients; Population; Post traumatic stress disorder; Posttraumatic epilepsy; Posttraumatic seizure; Risk factor; Risk factors; Seizures; Seizures (Medicine); Statistical analysis; Trauma; Traumatic brain injury
• ISSN: 1176-6328; 1178-2021; 1178-2021
• DOI: 10.2147/NDT.S141486

To explore the incidence and risk factors, including type of seizures for post-traumatic epilepsy (PTE) after severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). This was a retrospective follow-up study of patients discharged from Liaocheng People's Hospital between March 2011 and June 2015 with a diagnosis of post-traumatic seizures. Risk factors for PTE were evaluated in 68 inpatients by using Kaplan-Meier curves and the Cox model. Complete clinical information was available for 68 patients. A total of 54 cases (79.4%) were diagnosed as presenting with PTE, occurring from 10 days to 179 months after severe TBI. Nineteen out of 54 cases (35.2%) had been defined as PTE within the first 6 months after the trauma, 17 cases (31.5%) within 7-12 months, 8 cases (14.8%) within 13-24 months, 2 cases (3.7%) within 25-36 months, and 8 cases (14.8%) within 37-179 months after the TBI. The Kaplan-Meier curves demonstrated that simple partial seizures, surgical treatment, and onset of seizures occurring within 6 months after injury were associated with PTE. The Cox model indicated that, for patients aged >34 years at the time of injury, the PTE risk was 2.55 times greater than for those aged ≤34 years. In addition, simple partial seizures, surgical treatment and onset of seizures occurring within 6 months after injury were significant risk factors for the development of PTE.