Epilepsy in Latin America and the Caribbean: a survey on needs and resources

A survey was done on the needs and resources available to control epilepsy in the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. Responses came from ministries of health, prominent neu-rologists, and epilepsy advocacy organizations. A mailed questionnaire was used, and the re-sponse rate was excellent, 89%. The survey results showed that the private sector is better equipped to deal with epilepsy than is the public sector, in terms of both specialized personnel and access to a variety of drugs. Public policies are lacking, and linkages between medical per-sonnel and social workers are almost nonexistent. Primary care doctors and nurses are some-what able to diagnose some types of epilepsy but do less well with other types of the disorder. There is a strong justification for the new “Out of the Shadows ” initiative, in which the In-ternational League Against Epilepsy, the International Bureau for Epilepsy, the World Health Organization, and the Pan American Health Organization are working to improve epilepsy health-care services, treatment, and social acceptance. Epilepsy is one of the most common and serious neurological disorders af