Malter MP, et al. – Differential characteristics of status epilepticus (SE) in older (≥60 years) compared to younger adults (18–59 years) were examined. Furthermore, this study investigated the proportion and characteristics of new onset SE in patients with no history of epilepsy (NOSE) in older and analyzed the predictive parameters for clinical outcome in older individuals with NOSE. In patients with SE, older patients represented the predominant subgroup. Compared to younger patients, older patients suffered more often from non–convulsive semiology and had a less favourable short–time outcome. Among older patients, NOSE was not a predictive outcome parameter. Data proposed that avoiding infections ought to be given a priority because higher infection rates correlated with unfavourable outcome.

• To assess clinical characteristics and short-time outcome at discharge, the authors performed a monocentric retrospective analysis of all adult patients (≥18 years) admitted with SE to their tertiary care centre over a period of 10 years (2006-2015).

• The authors included 135 patients with SE in the study.
• In this study, mean age at onset was 64 years (range 21–90), 87 of the patients (64%) were older than 60 years.
• SE occurred as NOSE in 76 patients (56%), 67% of them were aged ≥60 years.
• They found no age-dependent predominance for NOSE.
• NOSE was not a relevant outcome predictor, particularly regarding age-related subgroups.
• Older patients with NOSE had less frequently general tonic clonic SE (GTCSE; p = 0.001) and were more often female (p = 0.01).
• Unfavourable outcome was correlated with infections during in-hospital treatment (0.04), extended stay in ICU (p = 0.001), and generally in hospital (p < 0.001) regarding outcome parameters and risk factors in older patients with NOSE.