Does epilepsy cause premature death?

People with epilepsy have an increased risk of premature death. The risk is highest soon after onset of seizures.

What is the life expectancy of a child with epilepsy?

Ninety-six percent of these children reached the age of 10 years, 89% the age of 20 years and 80% the age of 40 years. In the same study, 87% of children with idiopathic seizures reached 40 years of age, compared with 93% of those with cryptogenic seizures and 73% of those with remote symptomatic seizures.

What is the mortality rate of epilepsy?

Results From 1999 to 2017, epilepsy mortality rates in the USA increased 98.8%, from 5.83 per million in 1999 to 11.59 per million (95% CI 88.2%–110.0%), while all-cause mortality declined 16.4% from 8756.34 per million to 7319.17 per million (95% CI 16.3% to 16.6%).

What is premature mortality?

Death that occurs before the average age of death in a certain population.

What causes sudden death in epilepsy?

A seizure may cause a person to have pauses in breathing (apnea). If these pauses last too long, they can reduce the oxygen in the blood to a life-threatening level. In addition, during a convulsive seizure a person’s airway sometimes may get covered or obstructed, leading to suffocation.

What increases the risk of SUDEP?

The greatest risk factor for SUDEP is having tonic clonic seizures (grand mal). People with night time seizures may also be at higher risk. Missing medications or not taking seizure medicines as prescribed, because it can lead to more seizures, may also put people at higher risk for SUDEP.

Does epilepsy shorten life expectancy?

Reduction in life expectancy can be up to 2 years for people with a diagnosis of idiopathic/cryptogenic epilepsy, and the reduction can be up to 10 years in people with symptomatic epilepsy. Reductions in life expectancy are highest at the time of diagnosis and diminish with time.

Do epileptic seizures cause brain damage?

Most types of seizures do not cause damage to the brain. However, having a prolonged, uncontrolled seizure can cause harm. Because of this, treat any seizure lasting over 5 minutes as a medical emergency.

Do epileptics have a shorter lifespan?

What are the 4 major factors that contribute to early death?

Four factors—poor diet, high blood pressure, obesity, and tobacco use—were identified as primary causes of early death (defined as occurring before age 86) in the United States, according to the study led by Christopher Murray, of the University of Washington.

How is premature mortality measured?

The YPLL is often calculated by subtracting age at death from age 65 (the standard “death age”) for each decedent being studied, and then adding all these differences for a total YPLL, usually grouped by cause of death for comparison with cause-specific death rates.

Which of the following individuals would be at highest risk of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy SUDEP )?

Children with uncontrolled epilepsy or frequent seizures are at the highest risk for SUDEP. Read SUDEP information for parents of children with epilepsy.