Abstract
Background: Epilepsy is fairly a frequent occurrence in the elderly. It is commonly diagnosed after the
episode of two or more unprovoked seizures. Unprovoked seizures in elderly are recurrent rather than
younger individuals. This study was designed to estimate the concrete burden of frequent causes of
epilepsy.
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study with a total of 153 patients diagnosed case of epilepsy were
included in this study at Jinnah Medical College Hospital from February 2018-August 2018. Mean was
calculated for age, duration of disease of the patients. Causes of epilepsy, gender, and education was
calculated and presented as percentages. Electrolyte readings were taken i.e., Sodium, Calcium and
Magnesium levels and imaging was planned to rule out stroke, primary neurodegenerative disorders and
tumors. Post stratification Chi square test was applied and p-value less than or equal to 0.05 was considered
significant.
Results: The mean age of the patients was 63.91±5.68 years and mean duration of the disease was 4.61± 1.07
months. The common causes of epilepsy were found to be cerebrovascular disease 56.9%, cryptogenic
54.2%, neurodegenerative disorder 20.3%, traumatic head injury 11.8%, metabolic abnormalities or
electrolyte disturbances 10.5% and brain tumor 7.8%.
Conclusion: Elderly patients with first seizure should present to a facility designed in a way that neurologist,
cardiologist, rehabilitation and geriatrics work together to identify and treat the condition in a better way.
Anila Umer, Aijaz Ali, Syeda Urooj Riaz, Shazia Jatoi, Ajeet Kumar, Muhammad Ishaq. (2020) Causes of Epilepsy in Elderly Patients Presenting in a Tertiary Care Hospital of Karachi, The Pakistan Journal of Medicine and Dentistry, Volume 9, Issue 4.
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