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Depression in secondary epilepsy: relation to lesion laterality
M F Mendez1, J L Taylor, R C Doss
1St Paul-Ramsey Medical Center, University of Minnesota, St Paul 55101.
Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry
|February 1, 1994
Summary
Depression is common in epilepsy patients, especially those with secondary epilepsy caused by left hemisphere lesions. This study found a significant link between left-sided brain lesions and depressive disorders in epilepsy patients.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
Background:
- Epilepsy is frequently comorbid with depressive disorders.
- The association between epilepsy and depression may be influenced by the location and cause of the brain lesion.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between lesion laterality and the occurrence of sustained depressive disorders in patients with secondary epilepsy.
Main Methods:
- Reviewed 1611 epilepsy outpatients, identifying 272 with secondary epilepsy due to structural brain lesions (excluding mesial temporal sclerosis).
- Compared patients with sustained depressive disorders (n=25) to those without depression regarding lesion location, laterality, and seizure variables.
Main Results:
- Sustained depressive disorders were present in 9% of patients with secondary epilepsy.
- Patients with depression were significantly more likely to have unilateral left hemisphere lesions (58%) compared to non-depressed patients (21%).
Conclusions:
- The findings suggest a specific association between epileptogenic lesions in the left hemisphere and the development of depressive disorders in epilepsy patients.
- Left hemisphere lesion laterality is a potential risk factor for depression in secondary epilepsy.