Research from Cleveland Clinic has provided new information about epilepsy prevention

2009 JUN 23 - (NewsRx.com) -- A new study, 'Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy: impact, mechanisms, and prevention,' is now available. "Patients with refractory epilepsy face an elevated risk of sudden death, with rates as high as 1% per year. This phenomenon, known as sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP), is believed to be a seizure-related occurrence, but the exact underlying mechanisms are uncertain," scientists in the United States report. "Both pulmonary and cardiac pathophysiologies have been proposed. The cardiac mechanism of greatest interest is the precipitation of arrhythmias by seizure discharges via the autonomic nervous system. SUDEP prevention has centered on effective seizure control, and epilepsy surgery has reduced SUDEP incidence in a number of studies. Additional prophylaxis methods are needed, however, for the large number of patients with treatment-refractory epilepsy," wrote L. Jehi and colleagues, Cleveland Clinic. The researchers concluded: "Future research should aim to clarify whether the association between seizures and autonomic dysfunction and cardiac arrhythmias extends to a demonstrable cardiac mechanism for SUDEP."

Source: Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine, v.75s.2, March 2009: Lara Jehi, MD, Imad M. Najm, MD.