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Bi-directional association between epilepsy and dementia: The Framingham Heart Study
Stefanidou M, Beiser AS, Himali JJ, Peng TJ, Devinsky O, Seshadri S, Friedman D.. Neurology, 2020-10-23
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Objective To assess the risk of incident epilepsy among participants with prevalent dementia and the risk of incident dementia among participants with prevalent epilepsy in the Framingham Heart Study (FHS). Methods We analyzed prospectively collected data in the Original and Offspring FHS cohorts. To determine the risk of developing epilepsy among participants with dementia and the risk of developing dementia among participants with epilepsy, we used separate, nested, case-control designs and matched each case to 3 age-, sex- and FHS cohort-matched controls.
Key findings
- Methods We analyzed prospectively collected data in the Original and Offspring FHS cohorts.
- To determine the risk of developing epilepsy among participants with dementia and the risk of developing dementia among participants with epilepsy, we used separate, nested, case-control designs and matched each case to 3 age-, sex- and FHS cohort-matched controls.
- We used Cox proportional hazards regression analysis, adjusting for sex and age.
- In secondary analysis, we investigated the role of education level and APOE ε4 allele status in modifying the association between epilepsy and dementia.
Why it matters
This Framingham Heart Study analysis assessed the risk of epilepsy in people with dementia and the risk of dementia in people with epilepsy. It describes a bi-directional association between two conditions, not a treatment, cure or prevention.
Study details
- Study designcase-control study
- Participants4,906
- Effect sizeHR 4.67
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 66/100
Published in a leading specialty journal, and it is a case-control study. Scored zero for randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Neurology: journal h-index 525 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 6 / 12 | A case-control study |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2020 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 3 / 4 | 4,906 participants |
| Effect reported | 3 / 3 | Effect reported with a statistic (interval, p-value, ratio or similar) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 4 / 7 | Cited 93 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 11.6 citations a year over 8 year(s) since 2020 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 7.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 5 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 49 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Daniel J. Friedman: h-index 57 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | Yale University: institution h-index 1,927 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 5 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 33097599) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 66 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1212/wnl.0000000000011077
- PubMed: 33097599
- Original source →
- Free full text: PubMed Central →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 7 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Stefanidou, M., Beiser, A. S., Himali, J. J., Peng, T. J., Devinsky, O., Seshadri, S., et al. (2020). Bi-directional association between epilepsy and dementia: The Framingham Heart Study. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0000000000011077
Vancouver
Stefanidou M, Beiser AS, Himali JJ, Peng TJ, Devinsky O, Seshadri S, et al. Bi-directional association between epilepsy and dementia: The Framingham Heart Study. Neurology. 2020. doi:10.1212/wnl.0000000000011077. PMID: 33097599.
BibTeX
@article{stefanidou2020-33097599,
author = {Stefanidou, M. and Beiser, A. S. and Himali, J. J. and Peng, T. J. and Devinsky, O. and Seshadri, S. and Friedman, D.},
title = {{Bi-directional association between epilepsy and dementia: The Framingham Heart Study}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {2020},
doi = {10.1212/wnl.0000000000011077},
pmid = {33097599},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0000000000011077}
}
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