ArticleBMJ open2017
Cross-sectional study of the hospital management of adult patients with a suspected seizure (EPIC2).
Article in BMJ open, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers.
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Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed.
- A service evaluation of the recognition, care and management of functional seizures within a UK ambulance service.British paramedic journal · 2026Article
- Characteristics and causes in patients presenting with convulsions in the Danish prehospital setting.Scandinavian journal of trauma, resuscitation and emergency medicine · 2025Article
- Inpatient cognitive analytic therapy for functional neurological disorder: A mixed methods four-phase single-case experimental design.Psychology and psychotherapy · 2025Article
- Frequency and characteristics of functional neurological disorder in the emergency department.Journal of neurology · 2025Article
- Functional Neurological Disorder Among Neurology In-Patients.European journal of neurology · 2025Article
- Validation of a Machine-Learning Clinical Decision Aid for the Differential Diagnosis of Transient Loss of Consciousness.Neurology. Clinical practice · 2025Article
- Article
- Population-Based Analysis of 6534 Seizure Emergency Cases from Emergency Medical Services Data.Neurology and therapy · 2024Article
- Severe Post-partum Hypothyroidism Triggering Psychogenic Non-epileptiform Seizures, Myopathy, and Myxedema Coma.Cureus · 2024Article
- Dissociative seizures in the emergency room: room for improvement.Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry · 2024Article
- Raring to go? A cross-sectional survey of student paramedics on how well they perceive their UK pre-registration course to be preparing them to manage suspected seizures.BMC emergency medicine · 2023Article
- Non-1st seizure was less severe than 1st seizure with non-urgent level among suspected seizures transferred by ambulance.PloS one · 2023Article
- Article
- Seizures in adults with suspected central nervous system infection.BMC neurology · 2022Article
- Article
- A data linkage study of suspected seizures in the urgent and emergency care system in the UK.Emergency medicine journal : EMJ · 2020Article
- Patient views on use of emergency and alternative care services for adult epilepsy: A qualitative study.Seizure · 2020Article
- Using vignettes to assess the accuracy and rationale of paramedic decisions on conveyance to the emergency department.British paramedic journal · 2019Article
- Emergency hospital care for adults with suspected seizures in the NHS in England 2007-2013: a cross-sectional study.BMJ open · 2018Article
- Article
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo determine the clinical characteristics, management and outcomes of patients taken to hospital by emergency ambulance after a suspected seizure.
designQuantitative cross-sectional retrospective study of a consecutive series of patients.
settingAn acute hospital trust in a large city in England.
participantsIn 2012-2013, the regions' ambulance service managed 605 481 emergency incidents, 74 141/605 481 originated from Sheffield (a large city in the region), 2121/74 141 (2.9%) were suspected seizures and 178/2121 occurred in May 2012. We undertook detailed analysis of the medical records of the 91/178 patients who were transported to the city's acute hospital. After undertaking a retrospective review of the medical records, the best available aetiological explanation for the seizures was determined.
resultsThe best available aetiological explanation for 74.7% (68/91) of the incidents was an epileptic seizure, 11.0% (10/91) were psychogenic non-epileptic seizures and 9.9% (9/91) were cardiogenic events. The epileptic seizures fall into the following four categories: first epileptic seizure (13.2%, 12/91), epileptic seizure with a historical diagnosis of epilepsy (30.8%, 28/91), recurrent epileptic seizures without a historical diagnosis of epilepsy (20.9%, 19/91) and acute symptomatic seizures (9.9%, 9/91). Of those with seizures (excluding cardiogenic events), 2.4% (2/82) of patients were seizing on arrival in the Emergency Department (ED), 19.5% (16/82) were postictal and 69.5% (57/82) were alert. 63.4% (52/82) were discharged at the end of their ED attendance and 36.5% (19/52) of these had no referral or follow-up.
conclusionsMost suspected seizures are epileptic seizures but this is a diagnostically heterogeneous group. Only a small minority of patients require emergency medical care but most are transported to hospital. Few patients receive expert review and many are discharged home without referral to a specialist leaving them at risk of further seizures and the associated morbidity, mortality and health services costs of poorly controlled epilepsy.
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