Gauteng health calls for understanding, inclusion, and early intervention to improve lives as National Epilepsy Week concludes. Since thousands of seizure-related emergencies are recorded annually across healthcare facilities, officials say a proactive and informed approach could significantly reduce complications and save lives.

The department said in the past year, 11,344 epilepsy-related emergencies were recorded in Gauteng. The figures were released as South Africa concluded National Epilepsy Week on Monday (16/2). It’s an annual campaign aimed at raising awareness and educating the public about the neurological disorder.

Epilepsy is a chronic noncommunicable disease of the brain that affects around 50-million people worldwide, according to the World Health Organisation.

It is characterised by recurrent seizures, which are brief episodes of involuntary movement that may involve a part of the body or the entire body. Seizure episodes result from excessive electrical discharges in a group of brain cells.

“As the department, we continue to encourage communities to seek medical care as early as possible, when they experience any seizure-related symptoms,” said Gauteng department of health non-communicable diseases manager Patrick Magodzho.

“As the National Epilepsy Week comes to a close, we want to reaffirm epilepsy remains both a medical and a social condition that requires sustained awareness, and also practical action.”

Epilepsy seizures usually last only a few minutes. Photo: Shutterstock

Some of the stigmas and misconceptions surrounding epilepsy include a patient can swallow their tongue during an epileptic seizure.

Neurologist Dr Ben van Niekerk, from Life Park Hospital in Bloemfontein, said it is medically impossible to swallow your own tongue. “It is not safe to put anything in a person’s mouth during a seizure, and it won’t help at all.”

Another misconception is epilepsy is something supernatural or magical. Epilepsy is a medical condition, just like diabetes or heart disease. 

There is also a belief epilepsy is contagious, and people should stay away from those who have it. “That is completely false. It’s not possible to catch epilepsy from someone, no matter how close or intimate your contact has been.” 

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OFM News/Zenande Mpame dg