title: Sudden cardiac arrest in people with epilepsy in the community: Circumstances and risk factors.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To ascertain whether characteristics of ventricular tachycardia/fibrillation (VT/VF) differed between people with epilepsy and those without and which individuals with epilepsy were at highest risk.
  
  
  METHODS
  We ascertained 18 people with active epilepsy identified in a community-based registry of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) with ECG-confirmed VT/VF (cases). We compared them with 470 individuals with VT/VF without epilepsy (VT/VF controls) and 54 individuals with epilepsy without VT/VF (epilepsy controls). Data on comorbidity, epilepsy severity, and medication use were collected and entered into (conditional) logistic regression models to identify determinants of VT/VF in epilepsy.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In most cases, there was an obvious (10/18) or presumed cardiovascular cause (5/18) in view of preexisting heart disease. In 2 of the 3 remaining events, near-sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) was established after successful resuscitation. Cases had a higher prevalence of congenital/inherited heart disease (17% vs 1%, p = 0.002), and experienced VT/VF at younger age (57 vs 64 years, p = 0.023) than VT/VF controls. VT/VF in cases occurred more frequently at/near home (89% vs 58%, p = 0.009), and was less frequently witnessed (72% vs 89%, p = 0.048) than in VT/VF controls. Cases more frequently had clinically relevant heart disease (50% vs 15%, p = 0.005) and intellectual disability (28% vs 1%, p < 0.001) than epilepsy controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cardiovascular disease rather than epilepsy characteristics is the main determinant of VT/VF in people with epilepsy in the community. SCA and SUDEP are partially overlapping disease entities.
authors.affiliation: From the Stichting Epilepsie Instellingen Nederland (SEIN) (R.J.L., M.W., G.-J.d.H., J.W.S., R.D.T.), Heemstede; Academic Medical Center (M.T.B., A.B., H.L.T.), Amsterdam; University Medical Center Utrecht (M.W., F.S.L.), Netherlands; NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre (J.W.S., R.D.T.), UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London; Epilepsy Society (J.W.S., R.D.T.), Chalfont St Peter, UK; and LUMC Leiden University Medical Center (R.D.T.), Leiden, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Lamberts
authors.affiliation: From the Stichting Epilepsie Instellingen Nederland (SEIN) (R.J.L., M.W., G.-J.d.H., J.W.S., R.D.T.), Heemstede; Academic Medical Center (M.T.B., A.B., H.L.T.), Amsterdam; University Medical Center Utrecht (M.W., F.S.L.), Netherlands; NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre (J.W.S., R.D.T.), UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London; Epilepsy Society (J.W.S., R.D.T.), Chalfont St Peter, UK; and LUMC Leiden University Medical Center (R.D.T.), Leiden, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Marieke T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Blom
authors.affiliation: From the Stichting Epilepsie Instellingen Nederland (SEIN) (R.J.L., M.W., G.-J.d.H., J.W.S., R.D.T.), Heemstede; Academic Medical Center (M.T.B., A.B., H.L.T.), Amsterdam; University Medical Center Utrecht (M.W., F.S.L.), Netherlands; NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre (J.W.S., R.D.T.), UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London; Epilepsy Society (J.W.S., R.D.T.), Chalfont St Peter, UK; and LUMC Leiden University Medical Center (R.D.T.), Leiden, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Merel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wassenaar
authors.affiliation: From the Stichting Epilepsie Instellingen Nederland (SEIN) (R.J.L., M.W., G.-J.d.H., J.W.S., R.D.T.), Heemstede; Academic Medical Center (M.T.B., A.B., H.L.T.), Amsterdam; University Medical Center Utrecht (M.W., F.S.L.), Netherlands; NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre (J.W.S., R.D.T.), UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London; Epilepsy Society (J.W.S., R.D.T.), Chalfont St Peter, UK; and LUMC Leiden University Medical Center (R.D.T.), Leiden, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Abdennasser
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bardai
authors.affiliation: From the Stichting Epilepsie Instellingen Nederland (SEIN) (R.J.L., M.W., G.-J.d.H., J.W.S., R.D.T.), Heemstede; Academic Medical Center (M.T.B., A.B., H.L.T.), Amsterdam; University Medical Center Utrecht (M.W., F.S.L.), Netherlands; NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre (J.W.S., R.D.T.), UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London; Epilepsy Society (J.W.S., R.D.T.), Chalfont St Peter, UK; and LUMC Leiden University Medical Center (R.D.T.), Leiden, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Frans S
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Leijten
authors.affiliation: From the Stichting Epilepsie Instellingen Nederland (SEIN) (R.J.L., M.W., G.-J.d.H., J.W.S., R.D.T.), Heemstede; Academic Medical Center (M.T.B., A.B., H.L.T.), Amsterdam; University Medical Center Utrecht (M.W., F.S.L.), Netherlands; NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre (J.W.S., R.D.T.), UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London; Epilepsy Society (J.W.S., R.D.T.), Chalfont St Peter, UK; and LUMC Leiden University Medical Center (R.D.T.), Leiden, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Gerrit-Jan
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: de Haan
authors.affiliation: From the Stichting Epilepsie Instellingen Nederland (SEIN) (R.J.L., M.W., G.-J.d.H., J.W.S., R.D.T.), Heemstede; Academic Medical Center (M.T.B., A.B., H.L.T.), Amsterdam; University Medical Center Utrecht (M.W., F.S.L.), Netherlands; NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre (J.W.S., R.D.T.), UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London; Epilepsy Society (J.W.S., R.D.T.), Chalfont St Peter, UK; and LUMC Leiden University Medical Center (R.D.T.), Leiden, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Josemir W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Sander
authors.affiliation: From the Stichting Epilepsie Instellingen Nederland (SEIN) (R.J.L., M.W., G.-J.d.H., J.W.S., R.D.T.), Heemstede; Academic Medical Center (M.T.B., A.B., H.L.T.), Amsterdam; University Medical Center Utrecht (M.W., F.S.L.), Netherlands; NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre (J.W.S., R.D.T.), UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London; Epilepsy Society (J.W.S., R.D.T.), Chalfont St Peter, UK; and LUMC Leiden University Medical Center (R.D.T.), Leiden, Netherlands.
authors.forename: Roland D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Thijs
authors.affiliation: From the Stichting Epilepsie Instellingen Nederland (SEIN) (R.J.L., M.W., G.-J.d.H., J.W.S., R.D.T.), Heemstede; Academic Medical Center (M.T.B., A.B., H.L.T.), Amsterdam; University Medical Center Utrecht (M.W., F.S.L.), Netherlands; NIHR University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre (J.W.S., R.D.T.), UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London; Epilepsy Society (J.W.S., R.D.T.), Chalfont St Peter, UK; and LUMC Leiden University Medical Center (R.D.T.), Leiden, Netherlands. h.l.tan@amc.uva.
authors.forename: Hanno L
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Tan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D016757:Death, Sudden, Cardiac / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012042:Registries; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012307:Risk Factors; D055815:Young Adult