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Table 3 Possible causes of acute seizures

From: Incidence, causes and phenotypes of acute seizures in Kenyan children post the malaria-decline period

Possible cause

Complex seizure n = 1263 (%)

Simple seizure n = 1486 (%)

Overall n = 2742 (%)

p-value

Malaria

477 (38 %)

422 (28 %)

899 (33 %)

<0.001

Respiratory tract infections

180 (14 %)

352 (24 %)

532 (19 %)

<0.001

Fever of unknown origin

161 (13 %)

306 (21 %)

467 (17 %)

<0.001

Hypoglycemia

104/832 (13 %)

103/1184 (9)

207/2016 (10 %)

0.006

Gastroenteritis

56 (4 %)

95 (6 %)

151 (5 %)

0.025

Hyponatremia (<125Mmol/L)

50/759 (7 %)

31 (3 %)

81 (5 %)

0.003

Meningitis

69 5 %)

58 (4 %)

127 (5 %)

0.052

Neonatal sepsis

72 (6 %)

39 (3 %)

111 (4 %)

<0.001

Unknown encephalopathy

73 (6)

31 (2 %)

104 (4 %)

<0.001

Low hemoglobin (<5 g/L)

35/1047 (3 %)

34/1338 (3 %)

69/2385 (3 %)

0.246

Urinary tract infection

16 (1 %)

25 (2)

41 (1 %)

0.370

Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (birth asphyxia)

30 (2 %)

9 (1 %)

39 (1 %)

<0.001

Trauma

16 (1 %)

18 (1 %)

34 (1 %)

0.896

Skin disease

11(1 %)

19 (1 %)

30 (1 %)

0.305

Septicemia

12 (1 %)

15 (1 %)

27 (0 %)

0.875

Anemia

13 (1 %)

5 (<1 %)

18 (1 %)

0.025

Sickle cell disease

8 (1 %)

7 (<1 %)

15 (1 %)

0.565

Undetermined

5 (<1 %)

5 (<1 %)

10 (<1 %)

0.797

Ear infection

2 (<1 %)

5 (<1 %)

7 (<1 %)

0.356

Immunosuppression (HIV exposed)

2 (<1 %)

4 (<1 %)

6 (<1 %)

0.535

Eye infections

1 (<1 %)

4 (<1 %)

5 (<1 %)

0.244

Poisoning

2 (<1 %)

0 (0 %)

2 (<1 %)

0.125

Prematurity

2 (<1 %)

0 (0 %)

2 (<1 %)

0.150

Other causes

12 (0.95 %)

15 (1.01 %)

27 (0.98 %)

0.875

Outcome: died

104 (8 %)

54 (4 %)

158 (6 %)

<0.001