ArticleThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2011
Epilepsy mortality and risk factors for death in epilepsy: a population-based study.
Article in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 32 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
32 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 109 citations in OpenAlex.
- Mortality in patients with epilepsy: a systematic review.Journal of neurology · 2025Pooled it
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- People with epilepsy obtain added value from education in groups: results of a qualitative study.European journal of neurology · 2017Trial
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- Self-Management education for adults with poorly controlled epILEpsy (SMILE (UK)): a randomised controlled trial protocol.BMC neurology · 2014Trial
- The future of epilepsy care in the United Kingdom: A roadmap for technology-enabled transformation.Epilepsia open · 2026Review
- Real world testing and cost-effectiveness analysis of subcutaneous EEG (REAL-ASE): Protocol for a prospective multicentre interventional trial.Epilepsia open · 2025Article
- Global trends and burden of idiopathic epilepsy: regional and gender differences from 1990 to 2021 and future outlook.Journal of health, population, and nutrition · 2025Article
- Supervised and Unsupervised Deep Learning Approaches for EEG Seizure Prediction.Journal of healthcare informatics research · 2024Article
- Factor Structure of the GHQ-12 and Their Applicability to Epilepsy Patients for Screening Mental Health Problems.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Stratifying sudden death risk in adults with drug-resistant focal epilepsy: The SUDEP-CARE score.European journal of neurology · 2023Article
- The burden of epilepsy and unmet need in people with focal seizures.Brain and behavior · 2022Review
- Article
- Evaluating risk to people with epilepsy during the COVID-19 pandemic: Preliminary findings from the COV-E study.Epilepsy & behavior : E&B · 2021Article
- Pharmacologic treatment and SUDEP risk: A nationwide, population-based, case-control study.Neurology · 2020Article
- Patient views on use of emergency and alternative care services for adult epilepsy: A qualitative study.Seizure · 2020Article
- Alcohol-Specific Mortality in People With Epilepsy: Cohort Studies in Two Independent Population-Based Datasets.Frontiers in neurology · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundEpilepsy is an important cause of amenable mortality but risk factors for death in epilepsy are not well understood.
aimTo evaluate trends in epilepsy mortality in a large population and identify risk factors for death in epilepsy. DESIGN AND
settingNested case-control study in the UK, using data from the General Practice Research Database (GPRD) from 1993 to 2007.
methodParticipants were included if they had ever been diagnosed with epilepsy and prescribed anticonvulsant drugs. Trends in all-cause mortality in persons with epilepsy in the GPRD were compared with death registrations with epilepsy as the underlying cause. A nested case-control study was implemented to compare participants with epilepsy who died with those who did not die.
resultsThe prevalence of epilepsy increased from 9 per 1000 in 1993 to 12 per 1000 in 2007, and epilepsy deaths also increased in this period. In a nested case-control study, mortality was associated with: recorded alcohol problems (odds ratio [OR] 2.96, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.25 to 3.89, P<0.001); having collected the last anticonvulsant prescription 90-182 days previously (OR 1.83, CI = 1.66 to 2.03, P<0.001); having an injury in the previous year (OR 1.41, 95% CI = 1.30 to 1.53, P<0.001), and having been treated for depression (OR 1.39, 95% CI = 1.28 to 1.50, P<0.001). In data available from 2004 onwards, being recorded seizure free in the previous 12 months was associated with lower mortality (OR 0.78, 95% CI = 0.71 to 0.86, P<0.001).
conclusionMortality with epilepsy appears to be increasing. Patients who have alcohol problems, do not collect repeat prescriptions for anticonvulsant drugs, have recent injuries, or have been treated for depression may be at increased risk of death; patients who remain seizure free over 12 months are at a lower risk.
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