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Epilepsy's hidden toll on the heart and lungs: a clue to sudden death?

NCT ID NCT02813980

Knowledge-focused Sponsor: Mayo Clinic Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing This study
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Sep 11, 2026 · Last updated Sep 11, 2026

Summary

Mayo Clinic researchers are studying whether epilepsy changes how the body controls blood pressure, heart rate and breathing, and whether those changes relate to the risk of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP). The study enrolls adults aged 18 to 90 with epilepsy who can consent. Participants undergo monitoring of their circulatory and respiratory control, including during and around seizures, and researchers compare these measurements with each person's SUDEP-7 risk score to look for markers that might one day help predict who is most at risk.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

What this could lead to
If the measurements line up with SUDEP-7 scores, doctors could gain a new way to flag which epilepsy patients face the greatest risk of sudden death.
What could go wrong
This is a small observational study of 39 people, so it can only show associations, not cause and effect. Any markers it finds would need much larger studies before they change how doctors assess risk.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Participants

39 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Jun 2016

Expected to finish

Dec 2031

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Who is studied

Patients with epilepsy.

Ages

18 to 90 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Adults aged 18-90 * Able to consent Exclusion Criteria: * History of non-epileptic spells/seizures, * Children/adolescents under age 18 years * Pregnancy * Non-compliance with Epilepsy Monitoring Unit safety procedures * Unable to consent * History of dysautonomia * Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) * Asthma (active requiring therapy) * Pulmonary hypertension * Known Structural Heart Disease * Heart failure * Myocardial infarction * Stroke * Seizures due to traumatic injury * Prior surgery for epilepsy * Vasculitis * Raynaud's * Smoking (current or within the last 6 months)

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Death, Sudden, Cardiac epilepsy Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy visual epilepsy

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Epilepsy Seizures

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Mayo Clinic

    Rochester, Minnesota, 55905, United States

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