Seizure

Approximately 15 million women and girls of child-bearing age are living with epilepsy worldwide. To maintain optimal seizure control the majority of these women require treatment with antiseizure medications (ASMs) not only before conception but also throughout pregnancy and breastfeeding [1]. A growing body of evidence from observational studies and pregnancy registers has raised awareness regarding the potential teratogenic effects of ASMs [2]. The level of risk varies depending on the specific ASM.

It is increasingly accepted that the incidence of epilepsy in childhood is in slow decline. However, there are recent population-based studies that show wide variation within and between countries. For example, investigators from Italy reported a rate of 31 per 100,000 children in 2014 [21] and 79 per 100,000 ([2] in 2019 while in Finland the rate varied from 38 [51] to 87 per 100,000 ([41]). Few studies have reported changes in the incidence of childhood epilepsy in the same ...

In this issue of Seizure, Kumar and Kumar comment on our recently published study, “Impact of Antiseizure Medication with a Very Long Half-Life on Long Term Video EEG Monitoring” [1,2]. They have expressed concerns regarding our methods and conclusions.

The prevalence of DS is found to be 1 in 20,000 to 1 in 40,000 of the general population, with a male-to-female ratio of 2:11. Variants in the SCN1A gene which codes for the alpha subunit of the voltage-gated sodium channel 1.1 composed of 26 coding exons, are found in more than 80% of patients with DS, which includes severe myoclonic epilepsy of infancy (SMEI) and severe myoclonic epilepsy borderland (SMEB) or Dravet borderline phenotype [1–5]. The latter patients however ...

Dear Editor

Epilepsy is one of the most prevalent neurological disorder, affecting approximately 70 million individuals worldwide [1]. Despite the development and approval of numerous antiseizure medications (ASMs), nearly 30% of epilepsy patients exhibit resistance to pharmacotherapy [2]. The medical consequences staying behind inadequate seizure control comprise premature mortality, physical harm, societal exclusion, stigma, heightened prevalence of depression and anxiety, and an overall diminished quality of life [1].

The broad use of next-generation sequencing has led to the identification of an increasing number of epilepsy-associated genes. These new discoveries will benefit the clinical diagnosis, management, and genetic counselling of people with epilepsy. This Special Issue (SI) presents novel scientific contributions in this field, providing new insights into the genetics of epilepsy.

Epilepsy is a prevalent neurologic condition worldwide, with estimated lifetime prevalence rates of 5.8 per 1,000 in developed countries and 10.3 per 1,000 in urban areas and 15.4 per 1,000 in rural areas of developing countries [1]. However, due to variations in study methodology and limited data in many parts of the developing world, the true prevalence of epilepsy remains uncertain [1,2]. Brazil, in particular, lacks comprehensive data; however, published reports estimate the lifetime prevalence of epilepsy to be between ...

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant global health concern, impacting approximately 69 million individuals annually1 and is associated with several physical and cognitive complications, including seizure and epilepsy.2,3 These seizures, referred to as posttraumatic seizures (PTS), can manifest at different time intervals following the injury. PTS classification depends upon the time of seizure onset relative to the injury, comprising immediate PTS (<24 hours), early PTS (occurring between 24 hours and 7 days), and late PTS (>7 days post-injury).

An epilepsy-related attendance at A&E is associated an increased risk of subsequent death within 6 months. Although further work is required to provide a definitive explanation to account for these findings, in the interim it would seem reasonable that services are designed to ensure timely access and provide support at a time of greatest risk. We aim to determine the frequency of patients accessing specialist neurology services following an epilepsy-related admission/unscheduled care episode and consider ASM adherence at the point ...