Diabetic hyperglycemia is associated with the severity of epileptic seizures in adults

Huang, Chin-Wei; Tsai, Jing-Jane; Ou, Horng-Yih; Wang, Shin-Tair; Cheng, Juei-Tang; Wu, Sheng-Nan; Huang, Chao-Ching

doi:10.1016/j.eplepsyres.2007.12.012

« Previous Next »Epilepsy Research
Volume 79, Issue 1 , Pages 71-77, March 2008

Diabetic hyperglycemia is associated with the severity of epileptic seizures in adults

Chin-Wei Huang
- Department of Neurology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
Jing-Jane Tsai
- Department of Neurology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
Horng-Yih Ou
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
- Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
Shin-Tair Wang
- Department of Public Health, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
Juei-Tang Cheng
- Department of Pharmacology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
Sheng-Nan Wu
- Department of Physiology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
Chao-Ching Huang
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
- Department of Pediatrics, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
- Corresponding author at: Institute of Clinical Medicine, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, 138 Sheng-Li Road, Tainan 70101, Taiwan. Tel.: +886 6 2353535 5287; fax: +886 6 2753083.

Received 19 August 2007; received in revised form 15 December 2007; accepted 29 December 2007.

Summary

Epileptic seizures in diabetic hyperglycemia (DH) patients are not uncommon in clinical practice. Although there have been reports suggesting an association, most were limited case studies. The role of DH in the severity and recurrence of epileptic seizures remains unclear. We thus conducted a prospective comparative study of newly diagnosed unprovoked seizures in adult patients, with and without DH, from 2000 to 2004. Seizure semiology and severity were studied and all subjects were followed-up for 2 years to evaluate seizure recurrence. Forty-one patients in the DH and 70 patients in the non-DH group were recruited. Seizure clustering in initial presentation (63%) and in recurrence (78.6%) in the DH group was significantly higher than that in the non-DH group (38.5 and 41.4%) (p<0.05). In the DH group, the HbA1c at first seizure was significantly higher in patients with seizure recurrence than in those without (11.8% vs. 8.6%, p<0.05). Patients with poor glycemic control (HbA1c >9%) had significantly higher risk of seizure recurrence (44.8% vs. 8.3%) and clustering (79.3% vs. 25%) (p<0.05). In conclusion, DH might aggravate epileptic seizures. Severe seizures might be associated with recurrent seizures in patients with DH. DH should be investigated in adult patients with newly diagnosed epileptic seizures and aggressive blood sugar control might benefit seizure management in patients with DH.