Over the last four years, the percentage of Poles who declare that they are afraid of epilepsy has increased – in 2009 it was one in ten of us, and in 2013 – one in six – the PRO-EPI 2013 study showed Poles’ attitudes towards epilepsy.
They were conducted on the initiative of the Polish Society of Epileptology in September 2013 on a representative group of approx. 1000 people aged 15 and over.
According to the authors of the study, these results indicate that the general knowledge of Polish society about epilepsy is not improving, and in some respects it is even slightly deteriorating. Although the number of people who have ever heard about epilepsy has increased by 2009 percentage points since 6 (from 89 to 95%), a greater percentage of them assessed that there was no way to help people with epilepsy – in 2009 it was is 32 percent and in 2013, 41 percent. Interestingly, the percentage of people who believe that epilepsy can be caught has increased by 7 percentage points (from 2% to 9%).
37 percent of participants in the latest study admitted that epilepsy causes fear in them, and 16 percent. said it was afraid of the people who suffer from it. In 2009, these percentages were respectively: 35 percent. and 11 percent
Unfortunately, there is a perception in our society that epilepsy is a severe neurological disease, which is not always the case. The seizures do not have to be generalized seizures. Sometimes it can be, for example, + turning off + for a few or several seconds, completely imperceptible to the environment. People do not know about it and are afraid of epilepsy patients, who feel stigmatized and removed from society as a result “- commented on the results of the research by Prof. Ewa Motta, vice-president of the Polish Society of Epileptology.
The neurologist noted that most people with epilepsy can live and work normally, provided they receive effective treatment. She reminded that – according to estimates – 30 percent. people suffering from epilepsy have the so-called drug-resistant form of the disease. Many patients in this group can be helped by the latest generation drugs. Recently, one of them has entered the reimbursement list, but we are waiting for another one with a slightly different mechanism of action than the others. Due to the high price of patients, they cannot afford to finance this therapy on their own “- noted prof. Motta.
The low knowledge of Poles about epilepsy is also evidenced by the fact that although nearly half of the respondents declared that they know how to help a person with an epileptic seizure, as many as 84 percent. this group mistakenly stated that something hard should be placed between her teeth. Meanwhile, neurologists emphasize that such a procedure may do more harm than good, because it may, for example, break off teeth.
A person who has an epileptic seizure with generalized seizures should be kept calm, put them on their side, loosen the collar or tie and tilt their head slightly back and protect them against injury. The patient’s movements should not be restrained, and if he has fallen asleep after the seizure, the patient should not be woken up. If the seizure does not stop after a few minutes, call an ambulance.
Epilepsy is one of the most common diseases of the central nervous system. About 50 million people in the world suffer from it, in Poland – about 400 thousand.
The disease is caused by disturbances in the functioning of the brain, which result in uncontrolled discharges of nerve cells. This leads to various forms of seizures. The best known are generalized seizures, but they can also be: stiffness of the body and loss of consciousness, feeling of numbness, disturbed vision, hearing, taste and smell, but also a brief “shutdown” of consciousness.
Epilepsy is most often diagnosed in young children and people over the age of 65. Its cause may be, among others stroke or brain injury, but also a tumor (not always malignant). In more than half of patients, the exact causes of the disease are unknown. It is known that there is a genetic predisposition to epilepsy, although this does not mean that the disease is hereditary. (PAP)