Rufo-Campos M
Sección de Neuropediatría, Hospital Infantil Universitario Virgen del Rocío, Sevilla, España.
Rev Neurol. 2000 Jun;30 Suppl 1:S110-4.
The overall mortality associated with epilepsy has been estimated to be two or three times that of the general population. Data from contemporary studies show excess mortality in the first decade of life and the first few years after diagnosis.
The underlying disease of which epilepsy is a symptom is the main cause of death in new cases, while the epilepsy itself is a major cause in chronic epilepsy. Sudden unexpected death in epilepsy is probably the most common category of epilepsy-related deaths and is likely to be seizure-related in the great majority of cases. The mechanisms involved in sudden unexpected death in epileptics may include autonomically mediated cardiac arrhythmia and neurogenic pulmonary edema. Other causes of death are status epilepticus, trauma, burns or drowning secondary to a seizure, severe aspiration, food bolus, and the presence of significant cardiorespiratory disease.
据估计，癫痫患者的总体死亡率是普通人群的两到三倍。当代研究数据显示，在生命的第一个十年以及诊断后的头几年存在超额死亡率。
作为癫痫症状基础的潜在疾病是新发病例死亡的主要原因，而癫痫本身是慢性癫痫患者死亡的主要原因。癫痫猝死可能是最常见的与癫痫相关的死亡类型，并且在绝大多数情况下可能与癫痫发作有关。癫痫患者猝死所涉及的机制可能包括自主神经介导的心律失常和神经源性肺水肿。其他死亡原因包括癫痫持续状态、外伤、癫痫发作继发的烧伤或溺水、严重误吸、食物团块以及严重心肺疾病的存在。
