Differences in Mortality Between Veterans With Posttraumatic and Nontraumatic Epilepsy

This study demonstrates that PTE leads to higher mortality compared with other forms of epilepsy, being up to 2 times higher in selected subgroups. The mechanism of underlying TBI influenced mortality rate. PTE after diffuse cerebral TBI, focal cerebral TBI, or skull/facial fractures led to higher mortality relative to NTE. Relative to NTE, young-onset PTE had the greatest rate of mortality. These results show that the age of PTE onset and the TBI precipitating PTE influence mortality and are relevant to consider in clinical practice. Future work should explore the reasons underlying higher mortality in PTE and refine TBI classification using additional data sources.