Prevalence and correlates of diabetes, hypertension and diaphragmatic hernia among an epileptic population.

The occurrence of diabetes, hypertension, and diaphragmatic hernia was investigated in an institutionalized population of long-term epileptics. Review of medical records determined the prevalence ratio of diabetes to be about 1.6% and the prevalence of hypertension to be about 2.3%. Both of these estimates are significantly lower than the rates in the general US population. The prevalence of diaphragmatic hernia among females (4.8%) was found to be significantly higher than the general population rate, but the corresponding ratio among males (3.6%) was not. Associations with major drugs used were subsequently investigated using a case-control methodology. Implications for etiologic research are discussed.