When Swetha, a 34-year-old MBA degree holder, got a job in a reputed company, her joy knew no bounds. But little did she know that she would be asked to quit because of her medical condition. Ms. Swetha has been suffering from epilepsy for over two decades and is on life-long medication. Her condition was revealed in the office when she got minor seizures.
Just like many other diseases, epilepsy too is steeped in myths and misconceptions. Doctors are worried that even educated people know little about it and society is filled with prejudice and stigma towards patients with epilepsy.
Doctors said there are several patients like Swetha who face stigma and discrimination owing to which the families try to hide the disease from others. In most cases, they also do not seek medical help believing that epilepsy is a result of evil spirits or punishment from the gods.
“To ward off the evil spirit, many rituals are followed such as making the person wear bangles of different metals apart from forcing them to undergo painful procedures such as branding with hot iron objects and pointed metal and glass objects. Some even follow practices such as tattooing and burning with leather objects. To please the gods, sacred threads with lockets and idols are also worn,” G.T. Subhas, president of Indian Epilepsy Association, told The Hindu .
Although epilepsy is over 2,000 years old, some people still think it is a mental disease. Some follow beliefs such as making the person hold a bunch of keys or putting a spoon in the mouth. “These are unnecessary as epilepsy is easily treatable if diagnosed properly,” said Dr. Subhas.
P.V. Rai, president of the Bengaluru branch of the association, said epilepsy is the second most common neurological condition after stroke. Of the 70 million people suffering from epilepsy, nearly 10 million are in India.
“Repeated seizures caused owing to disturbance in the bio-electric activity of the brain leads to epilepsy. Despite varied etiology and majority of the seizures resulting from unknown causes, it has been shown that epilepsy can be managed effectively by single or inexpensive drugs. Nearly 75% of people with epilepsy can lead a normal life with regular treatment,” said Dr. Rai.
Not many neurologists
Of the less than 2,000 neurologists in the country, not more than 170 are in Karnataka with most of them concentrated around Bengaluru. What’s worse, government hospitals across the State have less than 10 neurologists.
Doctors, who said that the requirement is 15 times more, pointed out that one neurologist is available for nearly 4,000 epilepsy patients.
The existing undergraduate curriculum should include the management of common disorders and primary and secondary physicians should get training in the management of epilepsy, said Dr. Subhas.
