Clinical analysis of senile epilepsy

Abstract

Objective To investigate the etiology, clinical characteristics, treatment and prognosis of senile epilepsy. Methods Clinical data of 121 senile patients with epilepsy admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University from July 2011 to February 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. Results Ninety-six cases (79.3%) had definite causes. The common causes included cerebrovascular disease (59.4%), intracranial tumors (13.5%), central nervous system infection (8.3%), craniocerebral trauma (5.2%) and acute metabolic or toxic factors (11.5%). Seventy-one cases (58.7%) suffered from partial seizure, 29 cases (24.0%) suffered from generalized seizures, 17 cases (14.1%) from status epilepticus, and 4 cases (3.3%) from seizures which can not be classified. Sodium valproate and levetiracetam were the most commonly used drugs. Clinical conditions in 82 cases (97.6%) were controlled effectively with drug therapy, and most (88.1%) were treated with only a single drug. Conclusions There are several underlying etiologies in the elderly patients with epilepsy. The most common cause is cerebrovascular diseases, followed by intracranial tumors, central nervous system infection and trauma. In addition, acute metabolic factors or toxic factors cannot be ignored. Partial seizure is the most common type of seizures, especially the complex partial seizure. Monotherapy can reduce seizures in most elder patients. Key words: Epilepsy; Clinical characteristics; Therapy