Abstract
We determined underlying cause-specific mortality for incident unprovoked seizures from Northern Manhattan, New York City. We calculated the case fatality, proportionate mortality, and the underlying cause-specific standardized mortality ratios (SMRs), with U.S. death rates as the standard. Thirty-two deaths were observed between 2003 and 2007 among 209 participants. Case fatality was significantly lower for idiopathic/cryptogenic seizures versus symptomatic seizures. About 31.3% of the deaths were attributed to malignant neoplasms, 25.0% to diseases of the heart, 15.6% to influenza and pneumonia, 3.1% to cerebrovascular diseases, and 25.0% to other causes. Significant SMRs were observed for all causes (SMR = 1.6), influenza and pneumonia (SMR = 7.1), and malignant neoplasms (SMR = 2.9). Younger cases (<65 years) had increased SMRs for all causes, malignant neoplasms, and other causes. Older cases (≥65 years) had increased SMRs for influenza and pneumonia. Underlying cause of death paralleled the underlying cause of seizure in patients with symptomatic etiologies.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 2296-2300 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Epilepsia |
Volume | 50 |
Issue number | 10 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Oct 1 2009 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Epidemiology
- Epilepsy
- Mortality
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Neurology
- Clinical Neurology