ABSTRACT
In the fields of medicine, epidemiology, research, and public health, it is critically important to be able to ascertain the number of individuals at risk for a specific disease or condition as well as the number of individuals who die from that disease or condition. These numbers are used to monitor the general state of health for a specific area and the country at large. Public health researchers use these data to measure the impact of prevention programs, identify emerging diseases, locate hot spots. If we cannot identify cases of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP), we will be unable to determine the number of deaths from SUDEP, if the rates are increasing or decreasing, or if current treatment programs are beneficial or increasing the risk of death.
