Differential Diagnosis of Syncope and Epilepsy: A Literature Review

Introduction. Syncope and epilepsy often present with similar symptoms, complicating their differential diagnosis. This can lead to incorrect treatment, inadequate management, and poorer patient outcomes. Thus, accurately distinguishing between these conditions remains a key challenge in modern neurology. The primary goal is to identify reliable criteria that allow for timely and precise diagnosis.

Objective. This review aims to analyze the differential diagnostic features of epilepsy and syncope as documented in recent scientific literature.

Materials and methods. A systematic review was conducted on 71 open-access studies published between 2012 and 2025. About 80.3 % of these were international publications, including clinical guidelines, systematic reviews, and original research, while around 19.7 % were domestic sources. The selected works cover clinical, instrumental, and biochemical aspects of syncope and epilepsy, providing practical insights for clinicians. All sources were critically evaluated based on relevance, scientific novelty, and data credibility.

Results and discussion. The review identifies key clinical, instrumental, and laboratory criteria for differentiating syncope from epilepsy. It highlights the importance of the onset and progression of symptoms, electroencephalography, cardiological assessments, neuroimaging, and biochemical markers in clarifying diagnoses and ruling out other pathologies.

Conclusion. Accurate differentiation requires a comprehensive approach considering medical history, clinical features, biochemical data, and instrumental findings. Integrating these factors enhances diagnostic precision and guides effective treatment strategies.

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