Short-term consequences after COVID-19 in older people with epilepsy

Abstract

Background: This study aims to investigate the clinical characteristics and the short-term consequences of COVID-19 in older people with epilepsy. Methods: From January 28 to March 6,2023,a telephone follow-up survey was conducted to a group of older people with epilepsy after COVID-19 outbreak in Shanghai. Data on infection symptoms,duration,COVID-19 vaccination, and clinical characteristics and management of epilepsy were collected. Results: Eighty-two participants aged ≥50 years with SARS-CoV-2 infection were recruited. Common symptoms included fever (72.0%) and cough (63.4%).Overall, anti-seizure medication(ASM) accessibility was sufficient (95.1%),and medication adherence was good (93.9%).Three participants (3.7%)reported 1–3 seizures after virus infection. No statistically significant differences were observed in terms of clinical characteristics and consequences of COVID-19 in subgroups with participants aged <63 and ≥63years,with and without fever, antipyretic drugs users and non-users, and with ≥4 and <4 seizures/year before COVID-19. Conclusion: Our study found few cases of seizure onset and good ASM adherence after SARS-CoV-2 infection in older people with epilepsy. Further prospective studies are needed to understand the long-term consequences of COVID-19.

Keywords

• Epilepsy
• COVID-19
• Older people
• Seizure