Demographic and Clinical Characteristics of Patients with Epilepsy Admitting to Neurology Outpatient Clinic of Erzincan University Mengucek Gazi Training and Research Hospital

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluatethe demographic and clinical findings of patients with epilepsy in Erzincan.

Materials and Methods: Five hundred forty-eight adult patients with epilepsy who were admitted to the neurology outpatient clinic between January 2016 and August 2017 were included in the study. Patients’ age, sex, duration of epilepsy, risk factors, seizure frequency and type, number of drugs used, comorbid diseases, electroencephalography (EEG), and neuroimaging results were evaluated retrospectively.

Results: Two hundred eighty-three patients were men (51.6%), 265 were women (48.4%). The mean age was 40.64±17.9 years, and the mean illness duration was 11±11 years. Risk factors of epilepsy were found in 52.2% of the patients. Pathologic findings in neuroimaging were found in 46.8% of patients, and 48.2% of patients had pathologic findings in EEG. Thirteen percent of patients had more than one seizure per month, 8.9% of patients had a seizure-free period for five years. Focal-onset seizures were present in 54.8% of patients and generalized- onset seizures were present in 44.5% of patients. monotherapy was received by 58.9% of the patients, and 40.3% of the patients received polytherapy. Epilepsy was accompanied by other diseases in 27.7% of the patients. There was no significant difference between the sexes in terms of age of onset and duration, seizure frequency, number of medications used, psychiatric comorbidity, the presence of pathologic findings in EEG, and neuroimaging (p>0.05). Patients with pathological findings in neuroimaging were significantly older than 18 years of age (p=0.004). Pathologic EEG findings were detected more frequently in the same patients (p=0.001). Patients with psychiatric symptoms had longer epilepsy duration (p=0.005), and the number of antiepileptic drugs used was higher (p<0.001).

Conclusion: Epilepsy does not show sex differences in terms of many features. In patients with adult-onset epilepsy, pathologic findings are common in neuroimaging and EEG. Comorbid psychiatric disorders are associated with a longer and more resistant course of epilepsy.