The relationship between epilepsy and dementia

Recent work has suggested that epilepsy may be a prominent comorbidity in patients with dementia, including Alzheimer’s Disease, dementia with Lewy Bodies, and frontotemporal dementia. The presence of epileptic phenomena may also be associated with an earlier onset of cognitive deficits, a steeper decline in memory and cognition, more profound neurodegeneration, and an increased risk of mortality. However, despite this evidence being consistent with preclinical animal data, clinical reports remain sparse and critically limited to small-scale studies only. This has precluded a deep understanding of the evolution of epilepsy in dementia, its potential role in driving and escalating disease progression, and its value as a diagnostic marker and therapeutic target. In this project, we will directly address this research gap by assessing the prevalence and incidence of epilepsy in a large cohort of patients with mild cognitive impairment and dementia within a real-life setting.