Prevalence and predictors of seizure in patients with Alzheimer’s disease at a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Purpose: To assess the prevalence and predictors of seizures in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) at a Saudi tertiary hospital. Methods: A retrospective, matched case-control study was conducted using the electronic medical records of patients with AD who had an unprovoked seizure, from October 2015 to May 2018. Results: Nineteen cases and 195 controls were identified. Statistically significant risk factors for an unprovoked seizure in patients diagnosed with AD were hypertension (p = 0.001), autoimmune disease, stroke and TIA (p = 0.001). The multivariate logistic regression analysis identified hypertension (OR = 2.89; p = 0.009) and autoimmune disease (OR = 19.6; p = 0.045) as predictors of unprovoked seizure in AD patients. Conclusion: The occurrence of unprovoked seizures is more likely in severe cases of AD. In addition, the risk of seizure in patients with AD increases with two co-morbid conditions, hypertension, and autoimmune disease. However, further studies are required to determine the underlying mechanism of the association between the two risk factors and AD.