Stroke Victims Experiencing Seizures More Likely to Die

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Seizures may be a sign of significant brain injury, and may occur in patients that experience any type of stroke. A new study finds that stroke patients with ensuing seizures are more likely to die in the 30 days following stroke than patients without seizures. The findings show a mortality rate of over 30 percent at thirty days after stroke.

The study, would be reported in the recent issue of Epilepsia, finds that the overall occurence rate of seizures within 24 hours of an acute stroke is 3.1 percent. Patients with intracranial hemorrhages (bleeding within the brain), have an even higher occurence rate of seizures - 8.4 percent - in the first 24 hours after stroke.

Cerebrovascular diseases, including strokes, have long been recognized as a risk factor for the development of epilepsy, especially in elderly populations. However, the occurence rate of seizures within 24 hours of stroke has not been studied extensively.

The authors also aimed to establish any racial differences in the occurence rate of these post-stroke seizures. They observed that, despite the fact that blacks are known to have higher prevalence rates of both seizures and strokes (particularly in younger age groups), there were no racial differences in seizure incidence or mortality rates in the studied population.

"Patients with seizures in the setting of an acute stroke may constitute a target population for the development of drugs that may prevent seizures," says Dr. Jerzy P. Szaflarski, lead author of the study. "Because patients with stroke have high occurence rate of immediate and long-term seizures and epilepsy, they constitute a population where seizure prevention with anti-epileptic drugs can be studied".


Posted by: Daniel    Source