Prevalence and Temporal Trends of Epilepsy in Children: A Retrospective Birth Cohort Study.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Epilepsy is one of the most common chronic neurologic diseases in children; however, few recent studies examine the prevalence of epilepsy and its evolution over time according to birth or maternal characteristics. The aim of the study was to examine the prevalence of epilepsy in children born between 2002 and 2020 and the temporal trends by year of birth, in Ontario, Canada, overall, and according to maternal and birth characteristics.

Methods

We included all in-hospital deliveries between 2002 and 2020 (N = 2,343,482) in Ontario, Canada, using linked administrative health dataset. We estimated the overall prevalence of epilepsy diagnosed before the age of 18 years, by birth and maternal characteristics. For temporal trend analyses, we restricted our population to

SUBMITTER: Driollet B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12324693 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature