The Risk Of Seizure-Related Hospitalization Among Older Adults On Levetiracetam Monotherapy: A Retrospective Comparative Cohort Study

Figures & data

Table 1 Baseline Characteristics Of Patients

Characteristic	Antiepileptic Drug (AED)
	Levetiracetam (N=39)	Carbamazepine (N=44)	Phenytoin (N=31)	Valproic Acid (N=22)	Total (N=136)
Age (years), mean ± SD	69.12 ± 5.6	69.02 ± 7.75	72.06 ± 8.88	69.36 ± 9.13	69.80 ± 7.75
Gender, n (%)
Male	21 (51.28)	23 (52.27)	16 (51.61)	14 (63.63)	74 (54.41)
Female	18 (46.15)	21 (47.72)	15 (48.38)	8 (36.36)	62 (45.59)
Marital status, n (%)
Married	33 (84.61)	40 (90.9)	23 (74.19)	18 (81.81)	114 (83.82)
Widowed	6 (15.38)	4 (9.09)	2 (6.45)	3 (13.63)	15 (11.03)
Divorced	0 (0.00%)	0 (0.00%)	4 (12.9)	0 (0.00%)	4 (2.94)
Single	0 (0.00%)	0 (0.00%)	2 (6.45)	1 (4.54)	3 (2.21)
Nationality, n (%)
Saudi	35 (89.74)	41 (93.18)	30 (96.77)	20 (90.9)	126 (92.65)
Non-Saudi	4 (10.25)	3 (6.81)	1 (3.22)	2 (9.09)	10 (7.35)
Education, n (%)
No formal education	21 (53.84)	27 (61.36)	19 (61.29)	10 (45.45)	77 (56.62)
Elementary school	6 (15.38)	5 (11.36)	5 (16.12)	2 (9.09)	18 (13.24)
Intermediate school	1 (2.56)	3 (6.81)	0 (0.00%)	2 (9.09)	6 (4.41)
High school	3 (7.69)	3 (6.81)	2 (6.45)	0 (0.00%)	8 (5.88)
Associate degree	3 (7.69)	4 (9.09)	2 (6.45)	2 (9.09)	11 (8.09)
Bachelor degree	5 (12.82)	2 (4.54)	3 (9.67)	6 (27.27)	16 (11.76)
Number of Prescription Medications, mean ± SD	5.79 ± 2.86	5.38 ± 3.13	6.32 ± 3.07	6.31 ± 3.06	5.86 ± 3.02
CCI, mean ±SD	3.35 ± 2.09	2.54 ± 1.86	3.7 ± 2.9	3.04 ± 1.88	3.12 ± 2.23
Types of seizures, n (%)
Focal	10 (25.64)	15 (34.09)	8 (25.8)	3 (13.63)	36 (26.47)
Generalized	17 (43.58)	18 (40.9)	13 (41.9)	16 (72.72)	64 (47.06)
Unclassified	12 (30.76)	11 (25)	10 (32.25)	3 (13.63)	36 (26.47)
Mean AED dosage in milligrams ±SD	1011.72 ± 384.29	465.22 ± 224.32	244.89 ± 73.77	933.87 ± 395.26	-

Abbreviations: AED, antiepileptic drug, LEV, levetiracetam; CBZ, carbamazepine; PHT, phenytoin; VPA, valproic acid; CCI, Charlson comorbidity index.

Table 2 The Risk Of Hospitalization For Patients On Levetiracetam, Carbamazepine, Phenytoin, And Valproic Acid

Variable	Relative Risk (95% Confidence Interval)	P-value
Levetiracetam utilization^§	2.76 (1.16–6.53)	0.021
Education	0.96 (0.85–1.09)	0.599
CCI	0.91 (0.81−1.02)	0.106
Gender	0.69 (0.43–1.10)	0.119
Age	0.99 (0.96–1.03)	0.961
Number of prescription medications	1.1 (1.03–1.20)	0.009

Notes: ^§The utilization of different antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) was adjusted for dosage strengths. The bold data signify statistical significant (P<0.05).

Abbreviation: CCI, Charlson comorbidity index.

Figure 1 Patients’ recruitment scheme.

Figure 2 Rate of seizure-related hospitalization for different antiepileptic drugs.