title: Epilepsy prevalence in a rural area in Istanbul.
abstract: This study is a field study with cross-section and case control conducted in the Kucukcekmece Region of Istanbul between June 1999 and February 2000. Four hundred and ninety three dwellings selected by a simple random sampling method were visited. From a population of 2187, 58 people, after filling in a questionnaire were suspected to have epilepsy. Following an interview, neurological examination and an electroencephalogram (EEG) 17 were diagnosed as having epilepsy. Lifetime epilepsy prevalence was 0.8%. 41.2% of the 17 epilepsy cases had partial epilepsy ( n= 7), 47.0% had generalized (n = 8) and in 11.8% seizures could not be classified ( n= 2). The risk factors for epilepsy in the control group ( n= 125) from the same region and those with epilepsy were investigated by means of logistic regression analyses. Educational status (odds ratio : 1.82, 95% confidence interval : 1.13-2.94; P= 0.01), profession (OR : 0.76, 95% CI : 0.60-0.97; P= 0.03), history of epilepsy in the family (OR : 0.67, 95% CI : 0.47-0.94; P= 0.02) were determined to be correlated with epilepsy. The results have drawn attention to the fact that individuals should be informed about epilepsy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health, Istanbul Medical Faculty, 34390 Capa, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: A Emel
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Onal
authors.forename: Yildiz
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tumerdem
authors.forename: Mustafa K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Ozturk
authors.forename: Candan
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gurses
authors.forename: Betul
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Baykan
authors.forename: Aysen
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gokyigit
authors.forename: Sevda
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ozel
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002391:Catchment Area, Health; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology