• P Couillard, M A Almekhlafi, A Irvine, N Jetté, J Pow, C St Germaine-Smith, and N Pillay.
• Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Calgary, Foothills Medical Centre, 1403 29th Street NW, Calgary, AB T2N 2T9, Canada. Philippe.couillard@albertahealthservices.ca
• Neurocrit Care. 2012 Apr 1;16(2):241-5.

BackgroundTo assess the incidence of seizures in acute ischemic stroke patients treated with chemical (tPA) thrombolysis.MethodsRetrospective study including all thrombolysis patients treated in Calgary between January 1, 2001, and October 31, 2006. Descriptive statistics and age/sex-adjusted P values were calculated.ResultsOf 400 eligible patients (median age 74.0 years, range: 24-77), 16 (4%) developed post-stroke seizures: 10 (62.5%) within one week (early) and 6 (37.5%) after 1 week but within the hospital stay (late). Single-vessel anterior circulation involvement (93.8% vs. 87%, P = 0.34) and hemorrhage (37.5% vs. 20%, P = 0.15) were more common in those with compared to without seizures but did not reach statistical significance. Atrial fibrillation was more common in those with (56.3%) than without (36.1%) seizures (P = 0.04). Death during admission was more likely (P = 0.03) in those who sustained seizures (37.5%) compared to those without seizures (17.6%).ConclusionsIn this cohort of tPA-treated patients, post-stroke seizures were associated with atrial fibrillation and early mortality.

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