Is schizophrenia a risk factor for epilepsy or acute symptomatic seizures?

Purpose: The precise prevalence of epilepsies and seizures in patients with schizophrenia remains unclear. Methods: To assess the prevalence of epilepsy and of acute symptomatic seiz ures in schizophrenics, we conducted a survey in a urban sector of Marseill es that includes 56,910 inhabitants, among whom 1,154 had been treated for psychiatric disorders, including 460 for schizophrenia or paranoid disorder (PD) (DSM III-R 295 and 297.1, respectively; mean age, 41.9 years; range, 17-79 years; 215 men and 245 women). Results: All 460 patients were receiving long-term neuroleptic drug therapy , and 397 had been hospitalized at least once in the past year, whereas 63 were followed up as outpatients only. Seizures were present in the history of 12 patients: five had various forms of chronic epilepsy (four men, one w oman; DSM III-R 295.1, one case; 295.3, two cases; 295.9, two cases), and t hree of these experienced seizures only after the onset of their psychiatri c condition; five had acute symptomatic seizures (four men, one woman; 295. 1, two cases; 295.3, 295.9, and 297.1, one case), and two had only pseudoep ileptic events (both 295.3). Conclusions: This survey shows that the prevalence of epilepsy and acute sy mptomatic seizures is comparatively low in patients with schizophrenia or P D (10.8 parts per thousand each, respectively), and that the prevalence of a history of seizures (21.7 parts per thousand in this study) is not partic ularly increased in this middle-aged population. In contrast to childhood-o nset autistic disorders, schizophrenia or PD are not major risk factors for epilepsy or acute symptomatic epileptic seizures.