Seizure- or Epilepsy-Related Emergency Department Visits Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, 2019–2021

Sapkota, Sanjeeb; Caruso, Elise; Kobau, Rosemarie; Radhakrishnan, Lakshmi; Jobst, Barbara C.; DeVies, Jourdan; Tian, Niu; Hogan, Robert; Zack, Matthew M.; Pastula, Daniel M.

doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm7121a2

Cited by 13 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Meanwhile, the number of children with febrile seizures admitted during the pandemic signi cantly reduced to less than 23.4% compared to pre-pandemic admission numbers, indicating that the incidence of febrile seizures decreased during the covid-19 pandemic. This nding is consistent with recent studies that have shown a decline in seizure-related emergency department visits in children during the COVID-19 pandemic [19][20][21].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Serum Glucose and Electrolyte Levels in Children with and without Febrile Seizures: A case-control study

Mohamed

Tang

Thokerunga

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Background Febrile seizures (FS) occur in children aged six to sixty months with a febrile illness not associated with a central nervous system infection or metabolic disorder. Risk factors include; age, history of the disease, certain vaccinations, or iron and zinc de ciencies. Studies show signi cant hyponatremia, hypocalcemia, and hyperkalemia in children with febrile seizures. Similarly cerebrospinal uid hyperglycemia is common in febrile convulsions. This study aimed to retrospectively assess the relationship between febrile seizures, and electrolyte & glucose imbalance among children with fever, and also compare the annual trends of febrile seizure-related admissions pre and post Covid 19 pandemic. Methods A case-control study was conducted from January 2018 to January 2022 at

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Serum Glucose and Electrolyte Levels in Children with and without Febrile Seizures: A case-control study

Mohamed

Tang

Thokerunga

et al. 2022

Preprint

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show abstract

“…Likewise, Chiu et al (11) showed a significant reduction in pediatric seizure-related emergency department attendance during the COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong, with a more drastic reduction observed in children aged 0-6 years who are particularly prone to FS. Furthermore, in western countries, similar decreasing trends of seizure-and FSrelated emergency department visits were recorded in the early period of the COVID-19 pandemic (12,13).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 60%

“…Strict infection control measures, such as wearing a mask, handwashing, social distancing, and staying at home measures, may have reduced the burden of febrile illnesses and, consequently, the incidence of FSs. However, in the United States, seizure-related emergency department attendance in children returned to the pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels in 2021 ( 13 ). As a result of the relaxation of NPIs, a resurgence in the incidence of FSs is expected, and appropriate arrangements to cope with this should be made.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of COVID-19 on the incidence of respiratory viral infections and clinical characteristics of associated febrile seizures

Park¹,

Kim²,

Suh³

et al. 2023

Transl Pediatr

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Background: Viral infections of the upper respiratory tract are one of the most common causes of febrile seizures (FSs). During the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, mitigation measures have contributed to changes in the incidence of respiratory viral infections. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the incidence of respiratory viral infections and clinical characteristics of FSs. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 988 episodes of FS (865 before the pandemic and 123 during the pandemic) between March 2016 and February 2022. Seizure characteristics and their outcomes, along with the distribution of identified respiratory viruses were compared before and during the pandemic.Results: The occurrence of FSs decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to that before the pandemic. A substantial reduction in the incidence of influenza virus infections was observed (P<0.001) during the pandemic, while the incidence of rhinovirus infection was not significantly changed (P=0.811). Interestingly, a significantly high incidence of parainfluenza virus (P=0.001) infections was observed during the pandemic. No statistically significant between-group differences were observed in the clinical presentation and outcomes of FSs before and during the pandemic.Conclusions: Despite epidemiological changes in respiratory viral infections, the clinical characteristics and outcomes of FSs before and during the COVID-19 pandemic were comparable.

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“…This fear abated with vaccination, immunity, and less-virulent strains, as seizure-related ER visits returned to pre-COVID-19 levels by late 2020. 31 During the pandemic faceto-face education was suspended, restricting education opportunities. However, virtual meetings quickly replaced face-to-face meetings and could have provided a venue for education about new treatments.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Failure to use new breakthrough treatments for epilepsy

et al. 2023

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Seizure- or Epilepsy-Related Emergency Department Visits Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic — United States, 2019–2021

Cited by 13 publications

References 9 publications

Serum Glucose and Electrolyte Levels in Children with and without Febrile Seizures: A case-control study

Serum Glucose and Electrolyte Levels in Children with and without Febrile Seizures: A case-control study

Impact of COVID-19 on the incidence of respiratory viral infections and clinical characteristics of associated febrile seizures

Failure to use new breakthrough treatments for epilepsy

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