Global Epilepsy Research Funding Grossly Inadequate
Epilepsy, although it is prevalent in millions of humankind does not get enough funding for research and treatment development. There are many different types of seizures that can affect people in different ways. While seizures can be easy to diagnose and control for some people, for many others, epilepsy is a lifelong problem that can affect people in many different ways. In these cases, the solution starts with knowledge. However current data is outdated and potentially irrelevant. There are about 50 million people with epilepsy worldwide, who all need a chance to live a life without seizures.
Edwin Trevathan, MD, MPH, Dean of the St. Louis University School of Public Health in St. Louis and a member of the Neurology Editorial Board reports:
"We have almost nonexistent epilepsy surveillance or ongoing collection of data on newly diagnosed epilepsy, in the United States. As a result, we do not have good data to inform decisions made by our health leaders, and some of our best researchers are analyzing data that are 30 to 50 years old."
According to The Congress to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there are other priorities that warrant grant funding for such data mining, and as of late, the CDC has neglected this severe condition as a focal point of research. Limited funding results in public awareness campaigns instead of essential public health infrastructure, such as public health surveillance for epilepsy.
Trevathan continues:
"Epilepsy has a major impact on public health. A national approach to monitoring epilepsy trends is desperately needed in order to monitor the impact of improvements in epilepsy care, to identify problems with epilepsy care that need to be corrected, and to provide up-to-date data for researchers."
A study that dates back to an analysis of data based on 412 epileptic patients diagnosed with epilepsy between 1960 and 1979 in the state of Minnesota found that at least one in 26 people will develop epilepsy in their lifetime. The risk was higher in the elderly, with a risk of 1.6% in people under age 50 and a 3% risk for people up to age 80.
Dale C. Hesdorffer, PhD, associate professor of clinical epidemiology in the Sergievsky Center at Columbia University Medical Center in a study that was supported by the National Institute for Neurologic Disorders and Stroke and the National Institutes of Health summarizes:
"Our results highlight the need for more research using epilepsy surveillance data, especially given the aging population in the United States. Such surveillance will also provide useful information for health care planners as they address the service needs of people with epilepsy."
Current treatments for epilepsy are inadequate as well. Far too many people do not have their seizures controlled. In the United Kingdom for example, 30% of people with epilepsy cannot become seizure-free with current treatments. Many anti-epileptic drugs currently available significantly, affect patients' quality of life due to their side effects. Recent new treatment methods such as vagus nerve stimulation and new surgical techniques are helping, but there is still a long way to go yet in optimizing treatment for people with epilepsy.
The underlying causes of epilepsy are also still largely a mystery. There is no understanding as to why some people are born with a disposition towards epilepsy and others not. How a seizure starts in the first place, or what makes them spread is also an unknown. Finding more information about these phenomena may allow us to find new ways to tackle seizures, by developing new treatments. The only way to find new treatments is through research.
Scientific research is a very expensive business. It is slow and painstaking. Epilepsy Research UK often provides start-up funds for pilot projects, lasting 1-3 years that allows researchers to test a new theory. If the work is promising, the researchers then have good data to approach the major funding bodies for more substantial grants.
Although the findings in these summaries hold much promise for reducing the burden of the epilepsies, many researches need remain unmet. In particular, biomarkers and new and improved animal models are needed to aid the search for strategies to prevent epilepsy and to treat epilepsies that remain intractable to currently available interventions.
The American Academy of Neurology, an association of more than 22,500 neurologists and neuroscience professionals, is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as Alzheimer's disease, stroke, migraine, multiple sclerosis, brain injury, Parkinson's disease and epilepsy.
Questions and Answers
A fast way to get gout relief is with baking soda which I've found it to be very effective. But now that I have gotten my uric acid levels under control I don't need to use this home remedy anymore.
Gout was once the 'disease of kings' due to their diet, but not any more. Anybody can have gout nowadays. Easy access to relatively cheap, mass-produced food and alcohol has meant that we are all at the mercy of gout through our diet.
We need to keep our omega 6 foods at a minimum and include more omega 3 into our diets. Adding food items such as walnuts, chia seeds, to our salads is a simple and natural way to get our omega.
Most children demonstrate some impulsive/hyperactive behavior or have difficulty remaining on-task. Although typically found in boys, in 3-7% percent of children the inattentive, hyperactive, and/or impulsive behavior is recognized by clinician as being a significant problem that is not typical of normal development.
Tomas, a 34 year of carpenter, went to see his girl friend of six months at the end of a hard day. Noticing a strange car in the driveway, he peered into her window with some curiosity. He saw her having sexual relations with another man. Enraged, Tomas went home and returned with his shotgun.
From the studies on soda water, it is found that the contents of sodium is much higher than the normal water, causing cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure , strokes etc.
It is highly recommended that lowering of cancer risks can be achieved if we fellow rules : lowering of weight, taking of mother's milk for at least 6 months , vegetables, fruits, physical activities, lowering taking salts, or salt soaked meals, smoking, lowering of alcohols, red meat,and food of caloric values.
Scientists have identified a new type of mosquito. It is a subgroup of Anopheles gambiae, the insect species responsible for most of the malaria transmission in Africa. Researchers tell Science magazine that this new mosquito appears to be very susceptible to the parasite that causes the disease - which raises concern. The effective devise of controlling this disease is not well established
Here's some good news for women ever bothered by hot flashes and other menopausal symptoms. We know that hormones are important to breast cancer risk, and we also know that menopausal symptoms occur primarily because of changes in hormones that women experience as they go through menopause
More than half of the bottled water products surveyed failed EWG's transparency test -18 percent didn't say where their water comes from, and another 32 percent did not disclose any information on treatment or purity of water. Consumers have the right to know where their water comes from and what's in it so they can make informed choices that affect the health of themselves and their families
Discuss this Article
