title: Population-based survey on prevalence of adult patients with epilepsy in Taiwan (Keelung community-based integrated screening no. 12).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the prevalence rate and patterns of adult patients with epilepsy in Taiwan, we conducted a community-based neuroepidemiological survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Epilepsy was detected by neurologists using one-stage method. It was integrated into a community health screening service and performed from 1 January 2001 to 31 December 2001 in Keelung, a northern city in Taiwan. A total of 13,663 subjects aged 30 years or older participated in this survey.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 52 patients with epilepsy in this study. Among them, 37 were patients with active epilepsy. The age-adjusted prevalence rate of active epilepsy above 30 years old was 2.77/1000 (to the 1980 US population) with the highest rate in subjects aged 40-49 years (4.0/1000). There was a trend of higher prevalence rate in male than in female. The most common seizure type was complex partial seizure (46.0%). Using one-stage detection method, we found nine (24.3%) patients with active epilepsy who had never been diagnosed before. Among the patients with active epilepsy, 35.1% were symptomatic cases. Head injury (13.5%) is the leading cause, followed by CNS infection (8.1%), stroke (5.4%) and perinatal insult (5.4%). The lifetime prevalence rate of epilepsy (including active epilepsy and epilepsy in remission) was 3.14/1000 for age above 30 years.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Comparing to previous epilepsy survey in 1993, our results showed that the prevalence rate of epilepsy was rather stable over the past decade in northern Taiwan. Head injury is the leading cause responsible for active epilepsy. Improving public safety is an important public health issue which may help to reduce occurrence of epilepsy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology and Pharmacology, National Taiwan University Hospital and National Taiwan University, College of Medicine, 1, Sec. 1, Jen-Ai Road, Taipei 100, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chih-Chuan
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Ta-Fu
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Yuarn-Chung
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Hwang
authors.forename: Ying-Rong
authors.initials: YR
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Yueh-Hsia
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Chiu
authors.forename: Chia-Yun
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Rong-Chi
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Tony Hsiu-Hsi
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Horng-Huei
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Liou
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002494:Central Nervous System Infections / Q000150:complications; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000150:complications; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D017029:Epilepsy, Complex Partial / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology