Global campaign against epilepsy: assessment of a demonstration project in rural China.
OBJECTIVE
The Global Campaign Against Epilepsy demonstration project in rural China aimed: to reduce the treatment gap and morbidity of people with epilepsy by using community-level interventions; to train and educate health professionals; to dispel stigma; to identify potential for prevention and to develop models of integration of epilepsy control into the local health systems. We report the overall results of the demonstration project, focusing on the prevalence and the change in the treatment gap of epilepsy after an intervention.


METHODS
Door-to-door epidemiological surveys were carried out before, and 6 months after the end of, an intervention project for epilepsy in rural settings in five provinces of China. The intervention consisted of a treatment programme available to patients without prior appropriate treatment and a public health educational programme about epilepsy. The sampled population in the second survey was 51 644 people.


RESULTS
In the second survey, epilepsy was confirmed in 320 people, yielding a lifetime prevalence of 6.2/1000 and a prevalence of active epilepsy of 4.5/1000. The lifetime prevalence and prevalence of active epilepsy in the first survey were 7.0/1000 and 4.6/1000, respectively. The treatment gap of active epilepsy in the second survey was 49.8%, 12.8 percentage points lower than that of the first survey (62.6%).


CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study suggest that the intervention measures used were possibly effective and evidently feasible in rural China, contributing to a decrease in the treatment gap of epilepsy.
Wang
Wenzhi
W
WHO Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Neurosciences, Beijing Neurosurgical Institute, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
Wu
Jianzhong
J
Dai
Xiuying
X
Ma
Guangyu
G
Yang
Bin
B
Wang
Taiping
T
Yuan
Chenglin
C
Ding
Ding
D
Hong
Zhen
Z
Kwan
Patrick
P
Bell
Gail S
GS
Prilipko
Leonid L
LL
de Boer
Hanneke M
HM
Sander
Josemir W
JW
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D014943:Global Health; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D016730:Program Development / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015397:Program Evaluation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult
D000927:Anticonvulsants