Only 30% epilepsy patients get proper treatment: expert

KARACHI:

Noted neuro-physician of the country and President Epilepsy Foundation Pakistan Dr Fowzia Siddiqui has said that the disease of epilepsy is a serious health issue, as about 70 per cent patients of this disease are not getting proper medical treatment due to different reasons, adding only 35 per cent patients in urban areas and eight per cent patients in rural areas are being treated.

Addressing at a free epilepsy clinic at Bahadurabad, on Monday on the occasion of the Intl. Epilepsy Day, She said there are 65 million epilepsy patients in the world and 2.4 million patients in Pakistan alone.

She told that this disease is more common in children than adults. It is more prevalent in rural areas. About 5000 deaths are reported every year due to this disease. Dr Fowzia said that sadly about 50 per cent of patients who take medicines are not properly treated.

She said; however, epilepsy is a treatable disease and its 70 per cent patients could be treated with only one anti-epileptic medicine. She said that the burden of epilepsy is high in Pakistan. She said that epilepsy care is suboptimal, as awareness amongst both doctors and patients is low.

She said treating this neurological disorder needs a multidisciplinary discipline.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 15^th, 2022.