Link Between COVID-associated Seizures and Higher Death Risk Identified by Colleen Fleiss on April 1, 2021 at 8:21 AM
Hospitalized COVID-19 patients who experience non-convulsive seizures are at an increased risk of dying, suggested a new study published in the Annals of Neurology. Most of these seizures are not obvious: Unlike seizures that make a person fall down and shake, or convulse, seizures in critically ill patients are usually nonconvulsive, said researcher M. Brandon Westover from the Massachusetts General Hospital. There is increasing evidence that non-convulsive seizures can damage the brain and make outcomes worse, similar to convulsions, Westover added.
‘Neurological complications may be an important contributor to the morbidity and mortality associated with COVID-19.
Functional Seizures Linked to Stroke, Psychiatric Disorders by Colleen Fleiss on January 11, 2021 at 11:30 PM
A new study has confirmed associations between functional seizures and psychiatric disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, and sexual assault trauma.
The research was carried by Lea Davis, PhD, associate professor of Medicine and an investigator in the Vanderbilt Genetics Institute and team.
In a large-scale study of electronic health records, Vanderbilt University Medical Center investigators have determined the prevalence of functional seizures and characterized comorbidities associated with them.
‘A novel association between functional seizures and cerebrovascular disease, including stroke has been identified.
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Functional seizures are sudden attacks or spasms that look like epileptic seizures but do not have the aberrant brain electrical patterns of epilepsy.