KARACHI: Sharing how the stigma attached with epilepsy affected mental and social well-being of patients, health experts said that cases of epilepsy were on the rise, especially among children, many of whom were forced to leave their education either by the school administration or by their parents.

Organised to mark the International Epilepsy Day, a briefing was jointly organised by the Neurology Awareness and Research Foundation (NARF) and Epilepsy Foundation Pakistan (EFP) at the Karachi Press Club.

Explaining the disease, the experts said epilepsy was a neurological disorder characterised by seizures, which could be caused by a range of factors from a traumatic brain injury, developmental brain abnormalities, tumour, stroke, blood pressure, diabetes and imbalance of electrolytes to alcohol use.

But, the most common cause of epilepsy in Pakistan, they pointed out, was brain infections, such as tuberculosis of the brain and meningitis.

Experts say disease can successfully be managed in 95pc of child patients

“Since brain infections are on the rise among children more, their vulnerability to the disease has increased manifold. We must create the awareness that the disease can be successfully managed in 95 per cent of child patients,” NARF president Dr Muhammad Wasay said, adding most children didn’t require life-long treatment like adult patients.

However, he regretted lack of awareness about the disease and misconceptions and superstitions surrounding the illness not only delayed in-time treatment but also affected children’s education.

“When doctors break the news about the illness to parents, they react like their child has been awarded a death sentence. This attitude is unacceptable and absolutely unfair to a child who has the right to be educated and productive in society,” he said.

According to Prof Fawzia Siddiqui of the EFP, the disease is quite common in the country, affecting an estimated two million people.

“There are different types of epilepsies, all requiring proper diagnosis and treatment. What people should know is that it’s not contagious and treatable through medicines in most cases. But, they need to have guidance from a qualified doctor, preferably a neurologist with whom they can discuss their specific health issues,” Prof Siddiqui said.

Women’s sufferings

The experts emphasised the need for confronting the stigma attached with the illness, which caused a lot of harm to the physical, mental and social well-being of patients, particularly women.

“I remembered a case that I treated a long time back in which the young female patient was divorced and her six-month pregnancy aborted after her in-laws came to know that she had epilepsy,” shared Prof Siddiqui, stressing that cases of genetic epilepsy and mother-to-child transmission were rare.

Strong superstitions regarding epilepsy, she said, existed in our society and female patients often had to face difficulties in getting married, adding that 70pc of patients who received proper treatment could have a seizure-free life.

Dr Abdul Malik of NARF urged the government to include epilepsy medicines in the list of life-saving medicines and bear the treatment cost of poor patients.

“These medicines are primarily life-saving. Patients’ brain cells are vulnerable to damage after each seizure if he or she doesn’t take these drugs. Once damaged, brain cells cannot be rebuilt,” he said, adding that the government should ensure drug subsidies and patient access to cheap and quality medicines.

Published in Dawn, February 11th, 2023