Associations between duration of status epilepticus and clinical outcomes in adults: a systematic review

Duration of status epilepticus (SE) is widely considered a key determinant of outcome severity, but its prognostic value is hard to interpret because definitions of seizure onset, termination, and recurrence, as well as analytical handling, differ substantially across studies. We reviewed its association with mortality, functional outcome (motor and/or cognitive impairment), and refractoriness in adults.

We searched MEDLINE (via PubMed), Cochrane CENTRAL, and Scopus for studies examining SE duration in relation to clinical outcomes in adults. We extracted study design, SE phenotype, duration definitions, analytical strategy, and temporal thresholds. Risk of bias was assessed with the QUIPS tool. Outcome-specific associations were synthesized narratively.