Drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE) is defined by the International League Against Epilepsy as a failure of adequate trials of two tolerated, appropriately chosen, and used antiepileptic drugs to achieve sustained seizure freedom. Our aim was to calculate the following: (1) the prevalence of active epilepsy and DRE in a well-defined population of Northern Italy and (2) the proportion of incident cases developing DRE.The study population (146,506; year 2008) resided in the province of Lecco, Northern Italy. The medical records of 123 general practitioners were reviewed to identify patients with epilepsy, diagnosed by a neurologist during the period 2000-2008. The point prevalence of active epilepsy and DRE was calculated on December 31, 2008. A total of 747 prevalent patients with epilepsy, 684 patients with active epilepsy, and 342 incident cases were identified. The frequency of DRE was 15.6% (107/684) of all active epilepsies and 10.5% (36/342) of incident cases. The point prevalence was 0.73 per 1000. The standardized prevalence of DRE was 0.7 per 1000 (Italian population) and 0.8 per 1000 (world population).Our data indicate that 1/6 patients with active epilepsy in the general population has DRE, and 1/10 patients with newly diagnosed epilepsy will develop DRE within nine years from the diagnosis.

A population-based study of active and drug-resistant epilepsies in Northern Italy / G. Giussani, V. Canelli, E. Bianchi, C. Franchi, A. Nobili, G. Erba, E. Beghi, E. Agostoni, L. Airoldi, F. Basso, M. Carpanelli, M. Di Stefano, A. Magnoni, O. Martinelli, A. Rigamonti, A. Salmaggi, L. Stanzani, C. Volpe, N. Zanotta, C. Zucca, M. Agudio, F. Arienti, G.R. Arrigoni, G. Balestra, P. Ballabio, S.M. Balossi, M.R. Baratti, F.E. Barteselli, F. Bellani, M. Bellani, G. Bellini, P.A. Beretta, R. Beretta, M. Bergamini, A. Bertella, F. Bertolini, R. Bevilacqua, M.A. Bianchi, P. Bigiolli, G. Binda, G. Biondelli, L. Bodega, E.G. Bolis, M.V.C. Bolla, C.A. Bonacina, M. Bonfanti, F. Borghetti, R. Brambilla, W. Brancaleone, F. Brusadelli, S. Bub, G. Caccia, M. Caglio, C.C. Rossi, D. Capra, D. Carone, G. Carì, S. Carrera, R. Cavenago, M.L. Cecchetti, B.A. Centonze, F. Cereghini, C. Cerrone, M.P. Ciappetta, B. Cogliati, O. Colombano, A. Colombo, D. Colombo, M.L. Corti, N. Cremonini, M. Crippa, R.A. Crippa, M. Crotta, S. Curto, P. Daielli, D.D. Gilio, G.P. De Pascalis, E. Decet, L.D. Morte, F. Duvia, A. Favorito, R. Ferrario, L. Fezzi, A.L. Finzi, B.U. Fiorentino, A. Fornaciari, S. Franceschetti, F. Fulconis, G. Fumagalli, M. Fumagalli, G. Galbiati, C.A. Galimberti, D. Gecchele, B. Ghiazza, P. Ghislanzoni, L. Gioffredi, T. Hassibi, S. Julita, G. Leone, C. Levi, G. Locatelli, A.A. Locati, E.G. Longhi, I. Lukacova, M.G. Manfroi, P. Manzoni, C. Marcolini, F. Minicucci, M.S. Martini, R. Masperi, S. Mayan, V. Mazzoleni, A. Menga, F. Merlini, E. Messina, M. Micheli, R. Micò, A. Millul, B. Montini, A. Palazzuolo, S.P. Panzeri, G. Passoni, L. Pensotti, M.M. Petrone, R. Pezzuto, E. Pigazzini, N. Pirovano, M. Pontiggia, R. Pozzi, C. Quadrelli, F. Rampello, M. Realini, G. Righetti, C. Ripa, S. Rivetta, A. Romeo, C. Rota, T. Rusconi, A. Santarpia, I. Santi, L. Sciani, G. Scoccimarro, E. Scopinaro, A.G. Semerano, D. Sferco, A.E. Sirtori, A. Spandri, B. Spinelli, F. Stefanoni, R. Taiana, L. Tamagnini, L. Tassi, G. Tentori, A. Teodoro, K. Tinterova, A. Tocchetti, M. Todeschini, L. Trezza, V. Valsecchi, R. Vanini, C.F. Vercelloni, A. Villella, M. Viola, P. Vismara, D.M. Zoboli, M. Montesano, S. Romi. - In: EPILEPSY & BEHAVIOR. - ISSN 1525-5050. - 55(2016 Feb), pp. 30-37.

A population-based study of active and drug-resistant epilepsies in Northern Italy

C. Franchi;
2016

Abstract

Drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE) is defined by the International League Against Epilepsy as a failure of adequate trials of two tolerated, appropriately chosen, and used antiepileptic drugs to achieve sustained seizure freedom. Our aim was to calculate the following: (1) the prevalence of active epilepsy and DRE in a well-defined population of Northern Italy and (2) the proportion of incident cases developing DRE.The study population (146,506; year 2008) resided in the province of Lecco, Northern Italy. The medical records of 123 general practitioners were reviewed to identify patients with epilepsy, diagnosed by a neurologist during the period 2000-2008. The point prevalence of active epilepsy and DRE was calculated on December 31, 2008. A total of 747 prevalent patients with epilepsy, 684 patients with active epilepsy, and 342 incident cases were identified. The frequency of DRE was 15.6% (107/684) of all active epilepsies and 10.5% (36/342) of incident cases. The point prevalence was 0.73 per 1000. The standardized prevalence of DRE was 0.7 per 1000 (Italian population) and 0.8 per 1000 (world population).Our data indicate that 1/6 patients with active epilepsy in the general population has DRE, and 1/10 patients with newly diagnosed epilepsy will develop DRE within nine years from the diagnosis.
drug resistance; epilepsy; medical practitioners; prevalence; adolescent; adult; age factors; aged; child; child, preschool; cross-sectional studies; disease progression; drug resistant epilepsy; epilepsy; female; general practice; humans; incidence; infant; italy; male; middle aged; population; prevalence; primary health care; retrospective studies; young adult; neurology; neurology (clinical); behavioral neuroscience
Settore MED/26 - Neurologia
feb-2016
Article (author)
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/465828
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