CT findings in late-onset epilepsy.

We reviewed the CT findings of 387 patients with new-onset seizures after the age of 50. Seizures were generalized in 212 patients, focal in 160, and indeterminant in 15. CT scanning revealed cerebral atrophy in 113 cases, ischemic lesions in 75, cerebral neoplasms in 20, and no abnormality in 177 cases. Tumours were found in only three patients with generalized seizures, and all three had focal neurological deficits at the time of CT diagnosis, while 17 neoplasms were discovered in patients with a focal seizure disorder. The majority of patients with late-onset epilepsy have a normal CT scan with cerebral atrophy being the most common abnormality detected. Cerebral vascular disease appears to be the most frequently identified cause of late-onset epilepsy, while cerebral neoplasms are uncommon.