OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence and incidence of epilepsy among U.S. Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 years old and over, and to compare rates across demographic groups. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of Medicare administrative claims for 2001-2005, defining prevalent cases as persons with ≥1 claim with diagnosis code 345.xx (epilepsy) or 2 or more with diagnosis code 780.3x (convulsion) ≥1 month apart, and incident cases as prevalent cases with 2 years immediately before diagnosis without such claims. Prevalence and incidence rates were calculated for the years 2003-2005 using denominators estimated from a 5% random sample of Medicare beneficiaries. Results were correlated with gender, age, and race. RESULTS: We identified 282,661 per year on average during 2001-2005 (a total of 704,243 unique cases overall), and 62,182 incident cases per year on average during 2003-2005. Average annual prevalence and incidence rates were 10.8/1,000 and 2.4/1,000. Overall, rates were higher for black beneficiaries (prevalence 18.7/1,000, incidence 4.1/1,000), and lower for Asians (5.5/1,000, 1.6/1,000) and Native Americans (7.7/1,000, 1.1/1,000) than for white beneficiaries (10.2/1,000, 2.3/1,000). Incidence rates were slightly higher for women than for men, and increased with age for all gender and race groups. CONCLUSIONS: Epilepsy is a significant public health problem among Medicare beneficiaries. Efforts are necessary to target groups at higher risk, such as minorities or the very old, and to provide the care necessary to reduce the negative effects of epilepsy on quality of life.
OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence and incidence of epilepsy among U.S. Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 years old and over, and to compare rates across demographic groups. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of Medicare administrative claims for 2001-2005, defining prevalent cases as persons with ≥1 claim with diagnosis code 345.xx (epilepsy) or 2 or more with diagnosis code 780.3x (convulsion) ≥1 month apart, and incident cases as prevalent cases with 2 years immediately before diagnosis without such claims. Prevalence and incidence rates were calculated for the years 2003-2005 using denominators estimated from a 5% random sample of Medicare beneficiaries. Results were correlated with gender, age, and race. RESULTS: We identified 282,661 per year on average during 2001-2005 (a total of 704,243 unique cases overall), and 62,182 incident cases per year on average during 2003-2005. Average annual prevalence and incidence rates were 10.8/1,000 and 2.4/1,000. Overall, rates were higher for black beneficiaries (prevalence 18.7/1,000, incidence 4.1/1,000), and lower for Asians (5.5/1,000, 1.6/1,000) and Native Americans (7.7/1,000, 1.1/1,000) than for white beneficiaries (10.2/1,000, 2.3/1,000). Incidence rates were slightly higher for women than for men, and increased with age for all gender and race groups. CONCLUSIONS:Epilepsy is a significant public health problem among Medicare beneficiaries. Efforts are necessary to target groups at higher risk, such as minorities or the very old, and to provide the care necessary to reduce the negative effects of epilepsy on quality of life.
Authors: Bruce Hermann; Michael Seidenberg; Mark Sager; Cynthia Carlsson; Barry Gidal; Raj Sheth; Paul Rutecki; Sanjay Asthana Journal: Epilepsia Date: 2007-11-21 Impact factor: 5.864
Authors: E Wayne Holden; Elizabeth Grossman; Hoang Thanh Nguyen; Margaret J Gunter; Becky Grebosky; Ann Von Worley; Leila Nelson; Scott Robinson; David J Thurman Journal: Dis Manag Date: 2005-02
Authors: E Wayne Holden; Hoang Thanh Nguyen; Elizabeth Grossman; Scott Robinson; Leila S Nelson; Margaret J Gunter; Ann Von Worley; David J Thurman Journal: Epilepsia Date: 2005-02 Impact factor: 5.864
Authors: Emily L Johnson; Gregory L Krauss; Keenan A Walker; Jason Brandt; Anna Kucharska-Newton; Thomas H Mosley; Sevil Yasar; Rebecca F Gottesman Journal: Epilepsia Date: 2020-07-24 Impact factor: 5.864
Authors: Nicholas K Schiltz; Siran M Koroukian; Mendel E Singer; Thomas E Love; Kitti Kaiboriboon Journal: Epilepsy Res Date: 2013-08-16 Impact factor: 3.045
Authors: Lidia M V R Moura; Thiago S Carneiro; David Kwasnik; Valdery F Moura; Christine S Blodgett; Joseph Cohen; Mary McKenna Guanci; Daniel B Hoch; John Hsu; Andrew J Cole; M Brandon Westover Journal: Neurol Clin Pract Date: 2017-02
Authors: Lidia M V R Moura; Jason R Smith; Deborah Blacker; Christine Vogeli; Lee H Schwamm; Andrew J Cole; Sonia Hernandez-Diaz; John Hsu Journal: Med Care Date: 2019-04 Impact factor: 2.983
Authors: Robin E McGee; Martha Sajatovic; Rakale C Quarells; Erika K Johnson; Hongyan Liu; Tanya M Spruill; Robert T Fraser; Mary Janevic; Cam Escoffery; Nancy J Thompson Journal: Epilepsy Behav Date: 2019-04-08 Impact factor: 2.937
Authors: Emily L Johnson; Gregory L Krauss; Alexandra K Lee; Andrea L C Schneider; Jennifer L Dearborn; Anna M Kucharska-Newton; Juebin Huang; Alvaro Alonso; Rebecca F Gottesman Journal: JAMA Neurol Date: 2018-11-01 Impact factor: 18.302
Authors: Maria Pisu; Joshua Richman; Kendra Piper; Roy Martin; Ellen Funkhouser; Chen Dai; Lucia Juarez; Jerzy P Szaflarski; Edward Faught Journal: Med Care Date: 2017-07 Impact factor: 2.983