[Initial epileptic crisis after the age of 60: etiology, clinical aspects and EEG]

We reviewed retrospectively a series of 100 inpatients with onset of epileptic seizure after the age of 60. All of them were investigated by EEG and 96 by CT scan. The most frequent cause of seizure was previous stroke, with 25 cerebral infarcts and 5 hemorrhages. Neoplastic lesions were present in 18 cases, with glioma (high grade), meningioma and metastases in the same proportion. Other etiologies included toxico-metabolic (18 cases), post-traumatic (9 cases), cerebral atrophy (4 cases) and miscellaneous (14 cases). The causes of seizure remained unknown in 7 patients, of whom 6 had focal signs in either clinical examination or EEG. Focal seizures (with or without secondary generalization) accounted for 65% of all cases and generalized seizures for 35%. The EEG was normal in 12 patients and abnormal in 88, with diffuse slowing in 55 patients and focal signs in 70 (some patients had both diffuse slowing and focal signs). Fourteen patients presented status epilepticus. Ten died during hospitalization. We conclude that epileptic seizure with onset after age 60 is nearly always symptomatic, and neuroradiologic investigations are necessary in the search for cerebral lesions. In our study, the prevalence of "idiopathic epilepsy" is lower than previously described.