POST-STROKE SEIZURE IN PATIENTS ADMITTED TO TIKUR ANBASSA SPECIALIZED HOSPITAL
Abenet Tafesse Mengesha · Ethiopian Medical Journal · 2017
Background: Stroke is a devastating neurological emergency with high mortality and morbidity rate. Stroke has been considered as a major cause of seizures and in fact a leading cause of epilepsy in the elderly. Little is known about the magnitude and outcome of stroke related seizures in Ethiopia. We studied patients who were admitted with the diagnosis of stroke, their clinical presentation, associated complications and outcome. Methods:-This is a cross-sectional study based on analysis of clinical charts of patients admitted with the diagnosis of ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke to Tikur Anbassa Hospital from January 2009 to January 2012. Disability was measured using the Modified Rankin Scale. Data was collected from all charts with the diagnosis of stroke using a pre-prepared questionnaire, analyzed using SPSS version 20, and summarized using tables. Results: During the study period, there were 174 patients who were admitted with the diagnosis of stroke. Among these, 148 were included in the study. Of these, 14 patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage, five patients with venous strokes and seven patients who did not have imaging study were excluded from the study. Of the 148 patients, 37(25%) had different forms of seizure. Of the 76 patients with ischemic stroke 14/ (18.6%) and 23 (31.9%) of the 72 patients with hemorrhagic stroke had seizures. Conclusion: In this study, a substantial proportion of the patients developed seizure. The frequency of seizures in this study is similar with reports of studies conducted elsewhere. A well-designed epidemiological study is recommended to determine the magnitude, associated risk factors and clinical profile of seizures among adult patients with stroke. Key words: Stroke, Seizures in stroke-patients, Ethiopia