Facts and Statistics

Submitted by Linda McGlone

Prevalence in Australia

• The number of people currently living with epilepsy in Australia is close to 250,000.*
• Anyone can be affected by seizures at any age, but epilepsy is most frequently diagnosed in early childhood, adolescence and people over 65 years of age.¹
• Epilepsy is the most common serious brain disorder worldwide and affects people of all ages.²
• Up to 3–3.5% of Australians will experience epilepsy at some point in their lives.^*3
• Epilepsy can have significant social, physical and psychological consequences.⁴

 
Seizures and diagnosis of epilepsy

• Epilepsy is diagnosed if someone has:
  1. at least two unprovoked (or reflex) seizures occurring less than 24 hours apart
  2. one unprovoked (or reflex) seizure and a probability of further seizures happening.⁵

• You should never restrain someone having a seizure or force something into their mouth. Gently roll them on their side, support their head, protect them from injury and make sure their breathing is okay. For more details click here.

• It is commonly thought that epilepsy always involves convulsions. In fact there are around 40 different types of epilepsy and epilepsy syndromes.
• Seizures can vary from the briefest lapses of attention or muscle jerks to severe and prolonged convulsions. They can also vary in frequency, from less than one per year to several per day.²
• People with epilepsy can obtain a driver’s licence if their seizures are controlled by medication or if they fulfil the guidelines set out by the driving authorities.
• Many people outgrow or have a long-term remission from seizures. Epilepsy is not necessarily a lifelong disorder.

 
Treatment

• With treatment, an estimated 60-70% of people with epilepsy can be seizure-free, yet about three out of four people in developing countries do not get the treatment they need.^1,2
• After two to five years of successful treatment and being seizure-free, medications can be withdrawn in about 70% of children and 60% of adults without subsequent relapse.²
• A small percentage of people with epilepsy may be eligible for surgery. More than half the number of people who have surgery remain seizure-free long term.6 Many others experience a reduction in seizures or severity of their seizures.

 
Risk of death

• Epilepsy is associated with an increased risk of death, up to 2–3 times the general population, which may be related to:
  1. an underlying brain disease, such as a tumour or infection.
  2. accidents or seizures in dangerous circumstancesleading to drowning, burns or head injury
  3. prolonged or ongoing seizures (status epilepticus)
  4. sudden and unexplained causes – SUDEP (Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy)
  5. a possible respiratory or cardio-respiratory arrest during a seizure.
  6. treatment related death
  7. suicide.⁷

*Figures are based on Australian population in Feb 2017 of 24.6 million.

References

1. Brodie MJ, Schachter SC, Kwan P. Fast Facts: Epilepsy. 3rd Ed. Health Press, 2005, pg 9-12

2.  World Health Organisation. International Epilepsy Day [internet]. Available online: http://www.who.int/mental_health/neurology/epilepsy/en/ [cited 2017 June 12]

3.  Based upon a combination of WHO figures and Population figures obtained from ABS (3101.0) 

4. Boera, HM, Mulac M, Sandera JW. The Global Burden and Stigma of Epilepsy. Epilepsy Behav. 2008 May;12(4):540–6. Available online: http://www.epilepsybehavior.com/article/S1525-5050(07)00487-8/fulltext?cc=y= [cited 207 June 12]

5. International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE). Definition of Epilepsy 2014 [internet]. Available online:  http://www.ilae.org/Visitors/Centre/Definition-2014.cfm [cited 2017 June 12]

6. de Tisi J, Bell GS, Peacock JL, McEvoy AW, et. al. The long-term outcome of adult epilepsy surgery, patterns of seizure remission, and relapse: a cohort study. The Lancet. 2011 Oct: Vol 378 Issue 9800,1388–1395. Available online: http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(11)60890-8/abstract [cited 2017 June 12]

7.  Nouri S. Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy [internet]. e-medicine 2015. Available online: http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1187111-overview [cited 2017 June 12]