Seizures and Dementia in the Elderly

In the July 2014 issue of the journal Epilepsy & Behavior, Drs. Sherzai and colleagues examine the association between seizures or epilepsy and dementia in a nationally representative database – the Nationwide Inpatient Sample – among a population of those 55 years and above to determine the differences in seizures occurring in Alzheimer’s dementia versus those with non-Alzheimer’s dementia.

• Through the use of appropriate ICD-9 codes, a multi-variate statistical model was performed adjusting for age, gender and race to explore any relationship between seizures and epilepsy and dementia.

  • The researchers found that those with Alzheimer’s disease had a higher risk of developing seizures or epilepsy with an odds ratio of 3 as compared to cases with non-Alzheimer’s dementia with an odds ratio of 2.2.

  • After adjusting for age, the association increases for patients with Alzheimer’s disease -odds ratio of 4 but not appreciably for patients with non-Alzheimer’s disease with an odds ratio of 2.6.

  • Gender and race did not change the relationship for either Alzheimer’s or non-Alzheimer’s disease.

• The investigators concluded that patients with Alzheimer’s disease have a higher prevalence of seizures compared to patients with non-Alzheimer’s disease. Younger patients with Alzheimer’s disease were more likely to develop seizures, and race and ethnicity did not alter this relationship.