The Clinical Characteristics and Prognostic Analysis of Status Epilepticus in Northeast China

Abstract

Objective: Status epilepticus (SE) is a neurological emergency that may cause severe neurological deficiency and even death. The aim of this study was to analyze the clinical characteristics and prognosis of SE in northeast China. Additionally, the etiology and classification are discussed. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively collected the clinical profiles of patients diagnosed with SE in the Epilepsy Center of Jilin University between January 2011 and May 2015. The causes and clinical courses were investigated. The individuals were followed up by visit or telephone, and the prognoses were analyzed. Results: A total of 223 patients with SE were enrolled, including 134 cases with non-refractory SE (NRSE) and 89 cases with refractory or super-refractory SE (RSE/SRSE). Fifteen patients died during hospitalization, yielding a mortality of 6.73%; 11 of them succumbed to multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS). Statistical analysis showed significant differences in age, family history of epilepsy, and the incidence of non-convulsive SE (NCSE) between the NRSE group and RSE/SRSE group (p < 0.05). We found no significant differences in the causes of SE (central nervous system infection, autoimmune encephalitis, and epilepsy) between these 2 groups. Conclusion: In northeast China, SE is associated with relatively lower mortality, and MODS is the major cause of death. Older age and NCSE are risk factors predicting potential progression to RSE. Central nervous system infection, autoimmune encephalitis, and epilepsy were common causes of SE, but there was no significant association between any of these causes and the occurrence of RSE.

In-hospital mortality of status epilepticus in China: Results from a nationwide survey

“…Several studies have, however, reported lower mortality rates in the Chinese population. Our findings are consistent with those from a retrospective hospital-based study in Jilin province, which reported an overall mortality of 6.7% [13]. In a study from Sichuan, a 1.5% mortality rate in people with non-refractory SE, with an overall mortality of 7.14% in all people with SE [14].…”

“…Acute symptomatic causes which are frequently identified (up to 61.4%) as the main aetiology of SE [22] were not considered. These mainly include central nervous system infection, stroke or autoimmune encephalitis [9,13,22], and apparently serve as the main drivers of SE-related death [23]. The current search strategy is therefore likely to have missed people with severe SE or those who died in whom the direct cause was listed as the primary diagnosis and not as SE.…”