Abstract Details

Title Early Post-Stroke Seizures in Qatar

Topic General Neurology

Presentation(s) Neuroepidemiology Posters (7:00 AM-5:00 PM)

Poster/Presentation
Number 006

Background Qatar is a country on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. Although stroke incidence in Qatar is relatively low, much of stroke research in the Middle East comes from Qatar. There are no studies on early PSS in Qatar, and literature of early PSS in other Middle Eastern countries is scarce.

Objective To determine the rate, risk factors, and characteristics of early post-stroke seizures (PSS) in Qatar.

Design/Methods

This is a retrospective single center study at Hamad General Hospital (HGH), located in Doha, Qatar. HGH’s stroke database functions as a national registry, as almost all stroke patients in Qatar are cared for at HGH. Data from the files of all patients who experienced a stroke in 2019 (1,288 patients) were extracted and analyzed.

Results The overall rate of early PSS was 3.3%. Early PSS occurred in 1.9% of ischemic strokes, 7.6% of hemorrhagic strokes, and 19.4% of cerebral venous sinus thromboses; the difference in these rates was significant (p<0.001). Cortical involvement was a significant predictor for early PSS in patients with ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke (p<0.001 for both). In patients with hemorrhagic stroke, lobar involvement and Glasgow Coma Scale score were significant risk factors for early PSS (p<0.001 and p=0.002, respectively). Development of early PSS was not a significant predictor for greater Modified Rankin Scale score after adjusting for NIHSS score on admission and age. Seizure at stroke onset occurred in 47.6% of patients with early PSS. More than 90% of patients with early PSS experienced seizures within 4 days of stroke. Levetiracetam was the most commonly used antiepileptic drug (51.2%).

Conclusions This is the first study to determine the rate and epidemiology of early PSS in Qatar. With the burden of stroke rising in Qatar and elsewhere in the Middle East, it is important to understand early PSS in this region.

Authors/Disclosures
Tasnim Mushannen, MD (Duke University Hospital) PRESENTER	Ms. Mushannen has nothing to disclose.
Maria Siddiqi, MD	Dr. Siddiqi has nothing to disclose.
Rozaleen Aleyadeh, MD (UMass)	Dr. Aleyadeh has nothing to disclose.
Naveed Akhtar, MD, FAAN (Hamad Medical Corporation)	Dr. Akhtar has nothing to disclose.
Maher Saqqur, MD (University of Alberta)	Dr. Saqqur has nothing to disclose.
Salman Al Jerdi, MD (Weill Cornell Medicine - Qatar)	Dr. Al Jerdi has nothing to disclose.
	No disclosure on file
	No disclosure on file
Naim I. Haddad, MD, FAAN (WCM-Q)	Dr. Haddad has nothing to disclose.