The aim of this multicenter retrospective study, just published in Epilepsia, was to clarify the incidence and risk of acute symptomatic seizures in people with COVID-19 infection. A total of 304 patients were enrolled, of whom 108 had severe disease, between 18 January and 18 February 2020, at 42 government-designated hospitals in Hubei province, Sichuan province, and Chongqing municipality. None of the patients of the study cohort had a known history of epilepsy. Interestingly, neither acute symptomatic seizures nor status epilepticus were observed. Only two people had seizure-like symptoms during hospitalization due to acute stress reaction and hypocalcemia. Eighty-four (27%) had brain insults or metabolic imbalances during the disease course known to increase the risk of seizures. The authors concluded that there was no evidence suggesting an additional risk of acute symptomatic seizures in people with COVID-19 infection.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32304092
by Marialuisa Zedde and Francesco Cavallieri
