Immediate, early and late seizures after primary intracerebral hemorrhage

Summary Background Seizures after primary intracerebral hemorrhage (PICH) are significant and treatable complications, but the factors predicting immediate, early and late seizures are poorly known. We investigated characteristics and outcome with special reference to occurrence and timing of a first seizure among consecutive subjects with PICH. Methods A population-based study was conducted in Northern Ostrobothnia, Finland, in 1993–2008 that included all patients with a first-ever primary ICH without any prior diagnosis of epilepsy. Immediate ( 2 weeks) seizures were considered separately. Results Out of a total of 935 ICH patients, 51 had immediate, 21 early and 58 late seizures. The patients with seizures were significantly younger than the others and more often had a subcortical hematoma location ( p p p p p p p Conclusions Patients with subcortical hematoma and of younger age are at risk for immediate seizures after primary ICH irrespective of hematoma size. Patients with immediate and early seizures more often had infectious complications. Surgery increases the risk of a late seizure after ICH.