ECG changes in epilepsy patients
- 29 January 2009
- journal article
- Published by Hindawi Limited in Acta Neurologica Scandinavica
- Vol. 96 (2), 72-75
- https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0404.1997.tb00242.x
Abstract
Objectives ‐ To investigate the frequency of ECG abnormalities suggestive of myocardial ischaemia in patients with severe drug resistant epilepsy and without any indication of previous cardiac disease, assuming that these changes may be of significance for the group of epileptic patients with sudden unexpected death. Material and methods ‐ Twelve patients with medically intractable epilepsy were investigated with simultaneous long ECG and EEG recordings while attending either epilepsy surgery investigational procedures or the investigational programme for diagnostic purposes, and one while having an episode of status epilepticus. Results ‐ The ECG recording failed in 1 patient. This patient had chest pain and minor yet morphologically conspicuous changes in the ECG, suggestive of myocardial infarction. He died in heart arrest. Eight epilepsy patients had episodes of ST segment depression in the ECG, many of which coincided with video‐and EEG documented epileptic seizures. Two patients experiencing simple partial seizures and 1 patient experiencing absence seizures had no ST segment depressions in the ECG. One patient had an episode of status epilepticus secondary to brain damage and no ST segment deviation was seen during the ECG recording which continued until 3 h before the patient died. Conclusion ‐ Patients with severe drug resistant epilepsy have episodes of ST segment changes, some of which are closely related to epileptic seizures. Further studies are needed to confirm the present results and to investigate the nature of these changes and document the effect of prophylactic treatment with cardioactive drugs to reduce the risk of sudden death.Keywords
This publication has 11 references indexed in Scilit:
- Prominent Elevation of the ST Segment by ConvulsionChest, 1993
- Sudden death and epilepsySeizure, 1992
- Cardiac arrest due to partial epileptic seizuresNeurology, 1992
- Profiles of instant heart rate during partial seizuresElectroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology, 1989
- Paroxysmal autonomie dysfunction, epileptogenic activity and sudden deathEpilepsy Research, 1989
- ECG abnormalities in patients with epilepsyNeurology, 1987
- ELECTROCARDIOGRAPHIC ACCOMPANIMENTS OF TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPTIC SEIZURESThe Lancet, 1986
- Natural History of Epileptic SeizuresEpilepsia, 1983
- Mortality in Patients with EpilepsyEpilepsia, 1980
- The Epidemiology of Epilepsy in Rochester, Minnesota, 1935 Through 1967Epilepsia, 1975