In light of International Epilepsy Day, which falls on March 26 of every year, the Neurology Department at the Dubai Health Authority (DHA) launched a campaign at Rashid Hospital that aims to raise public awareness about the disorder.
Dr Muhammad Majid Al Kaylani, Neurology consultant at Rashid Hospital and head of the campaign said there are around 50 million people in the world who suffer from epilepsy and 2.4 million new patients diagnosed every year.
Epilepsy explained
Epilepsy is a chronic disorder of the brain that predisposes the individual to recurrent seizures. The symptoms of the seizure can occur unpredictably and can range from brief twitches or blank staring to complete loss of consciousness with falling and jerking of the body.
“In fact 10 per cent of the population are prone to seizures even if they don’t have epilepsy due to different reasons such as head trauma.
"We have launched this campaign for this reason to raise awareness among the public about epilepsy, its consequences, and ways of dealing with it,” he said.
Al Kaylani said that the latest studies have attributed the causes of epilepsy to genetics, lesions such as tumors, infections or metabolic reasons to name a few.
Al Kaylani added that the campaign also aims to encourage Dubai citizens who know a person suffering from epilepsy to reach out for help and initiate a local strategy targeting epilepsy through active engagement of medical professionals with the government of Dubai.
Campaign message
Dr Hamda Kamalboor, neurologist at Rashid Hospital and the event’s coordinator said that the main message of the campaign is to inform the public that with optimal treatment, many people with epilepsy can continue to lead a normal life.
“The campaign wants people with epilepsy to not to be quiet because 60 per cent of epilepsy cases can be controlled by medication. She said that Rashid Hospital holds a specialised epilepsy clinic every Thursday.
Dr Kamalboor added that the campaign will be launched in Dubai Hospital tomorrow to raise awareness about the disease.
“The campaign’s activities includes providing the public with an educational programme on epilepsy through distribution of materials on epilepsy and organising stations with physicians interacting with the public,” she concluded.
