THE PREVALENCE AND ASSOCIATED FACTORS OF EPILEPSY IN CHILDREN IN CALICUT DISTRICT, KERALA, INDIA

To determine the prevalence of epilepsy and its association with indic es of malnutrition, infection and perinatal complications in children in Calicut District, Kerala, India, a door-to-door two-stage survey wa s conducted in two local government districts. Among the random sample of 1172 children aged 8-12y, 26 conformed to the definition of epilep sy giving a 5-y period prevalence of 22.2/1000. A history of perinatal complications, low BMI and recent physical symptoms were independentl y associated with active epilepsy. The results suggest epilepsy is hig hly prevalent in this population of children and that further research is needed into its cause.