Neurology Advisor (4/6, Khaja) reports a study found that “suicidality present at the time of epilepsy diagnosis is associated with an increased risk for future treatment resistance among adults with focal epilepsy.” Researchers observed that “in multivariable analyses adjusting for confounders, suicidality at the time of epilepsy diagnosis was associated with a more than 2-fold increased risk for treatment resistance (relative risk [RR], 2.02). In contrast, mood and anxiety disorders alone were not significantly associated with treatment resistance after accounting for suicidality.” Furthermore, “the presence of suicidality substantially increased the probability of treatment resistance, from 16.3% among patients without psychiatric disturbances to 47.1% among those with suicidality alone (RR, 2.89). Although anxiety disorder alone was associated with a higher probability of treatment resistance (32.9%; RR, 2.02), this finding did not remain statistically significant after correction for multiple comparisons.” The study was published in JAMA Neurology.
Related Links:
— “Suicidality at Diagnosis Linked to Focal Epilepsy Treatment Resistance,”Hibah Khaja, Neurology Advisor , April 6, 2026