K. Karfo et al., EPILEPTICS AND THEIR DISEASE IN DAKAR, SE NEGAL - A STUDY OF PATIENT EXPERIENCES, La Semaine des hopitaux de Paris, 73(7-8), 1997, pp. 218-222
A semi-structured questionnaire was used to determine how patients wit
h grand-mal epilepsy perceive their disease in Dakar, Senegal, Patient
s reported that they were frequently excluded from social activities a
nd that their friends and relatives ascribed their disease to supernat
ural evil forces, They shared this belief, which was rooted in the tea
chings of traditional healers. Nevertheless most patients felt that mo
dern medicine could cure their disease. Many patients reported a lack
of participation in decisions about their disease, Dropping out from s
chool and keeping away from social activities were common behaviors ai
med at escaping from derision and harassment, In addition, occurrence
of a seizure in the presence of others was feared because of the rejec
tion induced by the belief that epilepsy can be transmitted via saliva
.