BackgroundA high prevalence of epilepsy in children is frequently found in developing countries.ObjectiveThis study aimed to determine the prevalence and clinical pattern of childhood and adolescence epilepsy in Upper Egypt.MethodsThis is a door-to-door study conducted on all inhabitants < 18 years in Al Kharga district and Al Qusier city (36,195 subjects). The study was conducted through two stages; every stage consisted of two phases (screening and diagnostic).ResultsLifetime prevalence of childhood and adolescence epilepsy (children < 18 years) in Upper Egypt was 9.7/1000, with higher prevalence among children < 12 years (10.8/1000) than adolescents (7.2/1000). The age-specific prevalence was highest in early childhood (12.01/1000) and least at adolescence (7.2/1000). More than half of the patients (59.4%) had idiopathic epilepsy. The most frequent etiology for structural/metabolic epilepsy was perinatal complications, particularly in infancy, followed by central nervous system (CNS) infections, in childhood, and post-traumatic epilepsy in adolescence. Partial seizures were more frequent in infancy, while generalized seizures were more frequent in late childhood and adolescence. Generalized tonic-clonic seizures (GTCS) were the most frequent type of seizures.ConclusionPrevalence of childhood and adolescence epilepsy in Upper Egypt was not so much different from other developing countries. Idiopathic epilepsy was more prevalent than structural/metabolic cases. Perinatal complications, CNS infections, and head injury were the most frequent etiologies, and generalized tonic-clonic seizures were the most frequent seizure type.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s41983-018-0032-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Abstract:Introduction: Epilepsy is a diverse set of chronic neurological disorders characterized by seizures. It is one of the most common of the serious neurological disorders. About 3% of people will be diagnosed with epilepsy at some time in their lives.

Objective: This study compared the effect of levetiracetam (LEV) as monotherapy to sodium valproate (VPA) as monotherapy on cognitive functions in patients with epilepsy. Methods: This was a comparative prospective study on 50 patients with newly diagnosed epilepsy started on antiseizure medications.

Summary:We sought to determine if there are differences in the incidence of seizure disorders between the children of the indigenous and immigrant (predominantly Pakistani) populations of Bradford, United Kingdom. Annual incidence rates per 100,000 for new onset seizures were calculated along with Townsend deprivation scores. The incidence of seizures (including febrile and single) was 153 (95%CI 104-139). The rate was significantly higher in south Asians (SA) (220; 184-255) compared to non-south Asians (non-SA) (121; 104-139), mainly because of febrile seizures whose incidence was 87 (136-169) overall and 142 (114-170) and 61 (49-74) in SA and non-SA, respectively. There were no significant differences in the rates of nonfebrile seizures (non-FebSz) overall and of idiopathic non-FebSz between racial groups but the rate for symptomatic/cryptogenic non-FebSz was significantly higher in SA (22; 10-34) compared to non-SA (6; 2-10). The occurrence of seizure disorders correlated with social deprivation.

Historical Background: Since the beginning of the 18 th century, Emotional Intelligence (EI) was a part of the general activity of the brain of human beings, until it became an independent subject in later years. The family is first place where