ASSOCIATION OF COVID-19 INFECTIONS WITH NEWONSET AND BREAKTHROUGH EPILEPTIC SEIZURES

ABSTRACT

Since the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, anecdotal reports have indicated a possible relationship between COVID-19 infections and novel seizures. This study explores the relationship between COVID-19 infections and novel or breakthrough seizures in a single New York-based hospital system with the largest patient sample to date. We analyzed 426 patients admitted with COVID-19 infections and administered antiepileptic medications between 1 February and 30 June 2020. Patients were divided into those with and those without a known history of epilepsy. The incidences of new-onset seizures and the mortality rates were compared between these groups by employing Pearson's chi-squared test, and their statisti-cal significance was measured by Fisher's exact test. Novel seizures were more likely to occur in patients without a known history of epilepsy than in patients with one (p=0.0004). There was no difference between the mortality rates of patients who had novel seizures and those who did not (p=0.1253). There was also no difference in mortality rates between patients who had a history of epilepsy and those who did not (p=0.9048). These results indicate that COVID-19 infections may cause novel seizures in patients without epilepsy, and would warrant further exploration into this pathophysiology.