EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL 4 PM ET, October 14, 2026
Epilepsy associated with increased risk of dementia before age 65
EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL 4:00 P.M. ET, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2026
Highlights:
- People with epilepsy may be more likely to develop young-onset dementia, according to a new study.
- Young-onset dementia develops before age 65.
- The findings were based on analyses of national health data from France and Sweden involving hundreds of thousands of participants.
- The study does not prove that epilepsy is a direct cause of young-onset dementia; it only shows an association.
- While the results show a strong relationship between epilepsy and young-onset dementia, the absolute risk remains low.
MINNEAPOLIS — People with epilepsy may be more likely
to develop young-onset dementia than people without epilepsy, according to a study published October 14, 2026, in
Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Young-onset dementia,
sometimes called early-onset dementia, develops before age 65. The study does
not prove that epilepsy is a direct cause of young-onset dementia; it only
shows an association.
“These results support integrating dementia prevention into
the care of people with epilepsy,” said study author Vincent Navarro, MD, PhD,
of Sorbonne University in Paris, France. “They may benefit from earlier assessments
of their cognitive risks and intensified management of risk factors that can be
modified, such as cardiovascular factors like high blood pressure.”
The study used two methods in two countries. One looked back
in time to see whether people with dementia had previously been diagnosed with
epilepsy or used epilepsy drugs. The other followed people with epilepsy over
time to see if they were diagnosed with dementia.
Using national databases in France and Sweden, researchers
looked at people who were diagnosed with young-onset dementia and matched them each
with 10 people of the same age and sex who did not have dementia. Then they
looked back to see whether people had a diagnosis of epilepsy or use of
epilepsy drugs up to 10 years before.
A total of 11,360 people with young-onset dementia were
compared to 113,600 people without dementia in France. In Sweden, 16,433 people
with young-onset dementia were compared to 164,330 people without dementia. In
France, 12.5% of the people with dementia had an epilepsy diagnosis, compared
to 1.2% of the people without dementia.
A total of 27.3% of those with dementia had received epilepsy
medications, compared to 10.3% of those who did not have dementia. Those
results were similar to those in Sweden.
For the other study method, researchers identified French people
ages 30 to 55 who were newly diagnosed with epilepsy in 2008 and compared them
to people who already had epilepsy before 2008 or did not have epilepsy. Then
those participants were followed for up to 10 years to see who developed
young-onset dementia.
There were 12,901 people newly diagnosed with epilepsy,
64,083 with existing epilepsy and 129,010 people without epilepsy. Over 10
years, 2.2% of the newly diagnosed people developed young-onset dementia,
compared to 1.7% of those with existing epilepsy and 0.2% of those without
epilepsy.
After adjusting for other factors that could affect the risk
of dementia, such as stroke, mood disorders and traumatic brain injury, people
newly diagnosed with epilepsy were six times more likely to develop young-onset
dementia than people without epilepsy. People with existing epilepsy were 74%
more likely to develop dementia.
“Previous studies have shown a link between epilepsy and
late-onset dementia, but limited evidence was available about young-onset
dementia,” Navarro said. “While these results show a strong relationship
between epilepsy and young-onset dementia, it’s important to remember that
absolute risk is low.”
A limitation of the study was that detailed information was
not available on the type or cause of dementia cases and the type of epilepsy
cases. In addition, the study was based on information from two high-income
countries with universal health care coverage, so the results may not apply to
other settings.
The study was supported by the
French National Research Agency.
Discover more about epilepsy at BrainHealth.com, a free public resource from the American Academy of Neurology. It offers a website, podcast, and books, connecting you with trusted information from the world’s leading experts in brain health. Follow BrainHealth.com on Facebook, X, and Instagram.