Neurological health deteriorates as income rises

Lecture discusses limitations over covering such diseases.

ISLAMABAD:

Neurological disorders are more common in the developed countries. Overall occurrence of neurological diseases in the world is around 6.5 per cent. However, it ranges from 4-5 per cent in lower income countries such as Pakistan, as compared to 10-11 per cent in high income countries.

This was said by Dr Muhammad Wasay, Associate Professor Neurology, Aga Khan University Hospital on Saturday.

He was delivering a lecture titled “Future of Neurology Research in Pakistan - Why Trainees Should Think About It” on the fifth Annual Neurology Research Day for medical students and residents organised by The Division of Neurology, Shifa International Hospital Islamabad. Medical students from Rawalpindi and Islamabad, trainees in neurology and faculty members attended the lecture.

He said the available information on the pattern and frequency of major neurological disorders in Pakistan is scanty and limited mainly to hospital-based populations who may not be totally representative of the community.

“Around 33 per cent of the Pakistani population above the age of 45 is suffering from hypertension and the alarming situation is that about one-third of these patients are unaware of this,” he added.

Discussing dementia, Dr Wasay said that 24 million people in the world are actively suffering from this disease and 98 per cent of them are more than 65 years of age. A more alarming fact was that most of these patients belong to low income countries.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 15^th, 2011.