Chronic alcohol use and first symptomatic epileptic seizures.
OBJECTIVE
To establish whether chronic alcoholism and alcohol consumption are risk factors for developing a first symptomatic epileptic seizure.


METHODS
Multicentre case-control study of 293 patients (160 men, 133 women) with a first seizure symptomatic (either acute or remote) of head trauma, stroke, or brain tumour, matched to 444 hospital controls for centre, sex, age (+/-5 years), and underlying pathology.


RESULTS
The risk of first seizure in alcoholics was no higher than in non-alcoholics for men (odds ratio 1.2, 95% confidence interval 0.4 to 3.2) or women (1.5, 0.1 to 54.4). The odds ratio (both sexes) was 1.2 (0.8 to 1.7) for an average intake of absolute alcohol of 1-25 g/day, 0.9 (0.5 to 1.5) for 26-50 g/day, 1.6 (0.8 to 3.0) for 51-100 g/day, and 1.4 (0.5 to 3.5) for >100 g/day.


CONCLUSIONS
We found no evidence of an association between alcohol use or alcoholism and a first symptomatic seizure.
Leone
M
M
Clinica Neurologica, Università A. Avogadro, Novara. leomau@iol.it
Tonini
C
C
Bogliun
G
G
Monaco
F
F
Mutani
R
R
Bottacchi
E
E
Gambaro
P
P
Rocci
E
E
Tassinari
T
T
Cavestro
C
C
Beghi
E
E
D000328:Adult; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000150:complications*; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000150:complications; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000150:complications; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires