“Poor awareness hampers fight against epilepsy”

TIRUCHI, March 26, 2015 THE HINDU

“Poor awareness hampers fight against epilepsy”

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Nahla Nainar


12 million people estimated to be epileptic in India

As the world observes Purple Day on Thursday, medical experts feel that a lot more needs to be done to create awareness about epilepsy and dispel the myths associated with the neurological disorder.

Speaking to The Hindu , Dr. M.A.Aleem, consultant neurologist and epileptologist at ABC Hospital, said “seizures, the very visible symptom of epilepsy, create panic, and often lead to mistreatment.”

Dr. Aleem is also the ‘Purple Day Ambassador’ for Tiruchi this year. The day was founded by nine-year-old Cassidy Meagan of Nova Scotia, Canada, in 2008 and it has now become a global grassroots movement (instituted formally in 2009 by New York-based Anita Kaufmann Foundation and Epilepsy Association of Nova Scotia) to raise awareness about epilepsy.

“There are several falsehoods about the disease that are reinforced by films and popular culture,” said Dr.Aleem. “Epileptics in seizure are often thought to be ‘possessed by devil,’ and the so-called traditional cures – giving the epileptic person a bunch of iron keys or jamming the patient’s mouth with a block of wood – is also dangerous. Faith-healers worsen the condition of the affected by misleading them and delaying the right treatment.”

At a press conference yesterday, Dr. M.Vikram, senior consultant neurosurgeon, Kauvery Speciality Hospital, said: “around 50 million people in the world are affected by epilepsy. In India, some 12 million are thought to be epileptics. Despite this, not many are interested in knowing more about the disease, or the right treatment for it.

“Usually, a 3 to 5 year course of medicine can help to control the disease and even cure it completely if taken regularly. There are around 150 symptoms of epileptic seizures, depending on which part of the brain has been affected,” he said.

Correctable causes, such as microbial infections, can lead to complete cure, provided the medicine regime is followed without a break, said Dr.Vikram. Hereditary conditions, however, may require life-long medication.

Epileptic patients should avoid trigger-behaviours such as sleep deprivation, prolonged computer usage, and extreme stress, he suggested.

Invasive brain surgery is one way to control some of the symptoms of epilepsy, but only if medicines didn’t help, said Dr. Vikram.

“Epileptic women can safely have conjugal relations and bear children with the help of the right type of medicines tailored to their condition,” he said.