Subsidy on Epilepsy Medicines Demanded

KARACHI - President, Epilepsy Foundation Pakistan and Eminent Neurophysician, Dr Fowzia Siddiqui, expressing concern regarding the 2 million plus epilepsy patients in Pakistan and demanded of the government to allow subsidy on medicines of this curable disease as thousands of patients are presently deprived of the treatment as they cannot afford buying very costly drugs.

Talking on the occasion of a free epilepsy medical camp organized by Tariq Hospital, Mehmoodabad, she said that this disease is fully treatable, provided the patients are diagnosed and treated early. She said there are a lot of myths about this disease which are wholly unfounded. She regretted that still in this modern era there are many people who could not understand this disease.

She said a lot of awareness is needed in Pakistan about the epilepsy, as more than 2 million patients of this ailment live in the country. She said many people still think it a mystery, magic spell or influence of some genii. She said the symptoms of this disease could be clear or hidden. Normally, a patient feels jerks for one or two minutes and he or she may fall unconscious, but these are symptoms are of the acute phase of the diseases.

She said there are a lot of types of epilepsy. Some patients keep silence and lose sense for a brief time; some show lip smacking and other facial symptoms. However, this is fully curable disease, provided the patients are correctly diagnosed and given proper medications. She said in some cases surgery is also suggested.

 She regretted that a large number of poor patients of this disease are deprived of treatment as they cannot afford it costly medicines. She appealed to the government to give a subsidy on the medicines of the epilepsy so that this disease could be systematically eradicated from Pakistan.

 On the occasion, new patients were registered and free consultation and medicines were given to them.