Background: Felt stigma is a major social and psychological problem in epilepsy and manifests the fear or expectations of such “reactions” from people. Understanding of the pattern and prevalence of felt stigma give...Background: Felt stigma is a major social and psychological problem in epilepsy and manifests the fear or expectations of such “reactions” from people. Understanding of the pattern and prevalence of felt stigma gives an insight into the burden of this “second illness” of epilepsy in southeast Nigeria. Methods: Consecutive consenting adult epilepsy patients attending a neurology outpatient in Enugu southeast Nigeria were interviewed. Data on felt stigma was also collected using a scale for collection of stigma data on stigma designed by Jacoby et al. Results: A total of 295 patients were interviewed during the study (165 (55.9%) males and 130 (44.1%) females). About 29.4% (88/295) felt stigmatized and 82.1% of them highly so. Correlates of felt stigma were age of onset (negatively), seizure frequency, duration of epilepsy, use of non-orthodox treatment, seizures occurring in public and the presence of physical injuries. Predictors of felt stigma were having seizures in public (R2 = 0.232, p Conclusions: Felt epilepsy stigma is common among patients attending urban tertiary hospital in southeast Nigeria. Several preventable factors are associated with this phenomenon hence efforts aimed at preventing epilepsy should also target felt stigma prevention.展开更多
Background: Electroencephalography (EEG) is established for evaluating several acute and chronic medical conditions of neurological basis. In much of Nigeria and Africa, it is largely unavailable and underutilized due...Background: Electroencephalography (EEG) is established for evaluating several acute and chronic medical conditions of neurological basis. In much of Nigeria and Africa, it is largely unavailable and underutilized due to scarcity of neurologists and high costs of the equipment. It offers a relatively simple and efficient way to help manage many encephalopathies if well utilized in trained hands. Aim: This study aimed to determine how physicians practicing in Enugu perceive and utilize electroencephalography routinely. Method: Physicians attending a statewide meeting in Enugu in August 2018 were consecutively recruited and a pretested questionnaire was administered after obtaining prior consent. Sociodemographic data as well as their knowledge, attitude and practice of electroencephalography were documented and analyzed. Results: There were 486 respondents (males 335: females 151) and 345 (71%) were specialists in various disciplines while 141 (29%) were general practitioners. Only 7 doctors (1.4%) claimed ignorance of electroencephalography and 6 (1.2%) stated it was not useful. Majority, 333 doctors (69.1%) believed it had no impact on routine patient management. This perception was highest for Dental Surgery (100%) and lowest for Internal Medicine (23%) specialists. Most doctors (425, 87.4%) agreed that neurologists should analyze recordings. Most physicians had no access to electroencephalography (61.7%) and had no interest in acquiring the machine (50.8%). Conclusion: Electroencephalography is an underappreciated investigative modality amongst physicians in Enugu, despite a high burden of neurological diseases in the population. More education, training and awareness of its utility are needed for medical students and doctors to reverse the trend.展开更多
文摘Background: Felt stigma is a major social and psychological problem in epilepsy and manifests the fear or expectations of such “reactions” from people. Understanding of the pattern and prevalence of felt stigma gives an insight into the burden of this “second illness” of epilepsy in southeast Nigeria. Methods: Consecutive consenting adult epilepsy patients attending a neurology outpatient in Enugu southeast Nigeria were interviewed. Data on felt stigma was also collected using a scale for collection of stigma data on stigma designed by Jacoby et al. Results: A total of 295 patients were interviewed during the study (165 (55.9%) males and 130 (44.1%) females). About 29.4% (88/295) felt stigmatized and 82.1% of them highly so. Correlates of felt stigma were age of onset (negatively), seizure frequency, duration of epilepsy, use of non-orthodox treatment, seizures occurring in public and the presence of physical injuries. Predictors of felt stigma were having seizures in public (R2 = 0.232, p Conclusions: Felt epilepsy stigma is common among patients attending urban tertiary hospital in southeast Nigeria. Several preventable factors are associated with this phenomenon hence efforts aimed at preventing epilepsy should also target felt stigma prevention.
文摘Background: Electroencephalography (EEG) is established for evaluating several acute and chronic medical conditions of neurological basis. In much of Nigeria and Africa, it is largely unavailable and underutilized due to scarcity of neurologists and high costs of the equipment. It offers a relatively simple and efficient way to help manage many encephalopathies if well utilized in trained hands. Aim: This study aimed to determine how physicians practicing in Enugu perceive and utilize electroencephalography routinely. Method: Physicians attending a statewide meeting in Enugu in August 2018 were consecutively recruited and a pretested questionnaire was administered after obtaining prior consent. Sociodemographic data as well as their knowledge, attitude and practice of electroencephalography were documented and analyzed. Results: There were 486 respondents (males 335: females 151) and 345 (71%) were specialists in various disciplines while 141 (29%) were general practitioners. Only 7 doctors (1.4%) claimed ignorance of electroencephalography and 6 (1.2%) stated it was not useful. Majority, 333 doctors (69.1%) believed it had no impact on routine patient management. This perception was highest for Dental Surgery (100%) and lowest for Internal Medicine (23%) specialists. Most doctors (425, 87.4%) agreed that neurologists should analyze recordings. Most physicians had no access to electroencephalography (61.7%) and had no interest in acquiring the machine (50.8%). Conclusion: Electroencephalography is an underappreciated investigative modality amongst physicians in Enugu, despite a high burden of neurological diseases in the population. More education, training and awareness of its utility are needed for medical students and doctors to reverse the trend.
