title: Access to antiepileptic drug therapy in children in Camagüey Province, Cuba.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe access to antiepileptic drug therapy and estimate the prevalence of epilepsy in children in Camagüey Province, Cuba.
  
  
  METHODS
  All the community pharmacies in the province were visited and information collected about the number of children receiving antiepileptic drugs in 2009. Availability and cost of each antiepileptic drug were determined. The prevalence of epilepsy was estimated by determining the number of children receiving antiepileptic drugs.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 923 children who received a total of 977 antiepileptic drugs in Camagüey Province. The estimated prevalence of epilepsy was 5.18 per thousand children which is lower than previously reported rates in other low and lower-middle income countries. Most of the children (871, 94%) received a single antiepileptic drug. Carbamazepine and valproate were the two most frequently prescribed antiepileptic drugs. Antiepileptic drugs were available from the local pharmacy on 76% of occasions. If the antiepileptic drug was not available from the local pharmacy, the parent had to travel to another pharmacy to obtain the medicine.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The estimated prevalence of epilepsy in children in Cuba is lower than that estimated in other lower-middle income countries. Access to drug therapy in children with epilepsy can be achieved in lower-middle income countries.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacoepidemiology, Camagüey Children's Hospital, University of Havana, Havana, Cuba.
authors.forename: Zeina Bárzaga
authors.initials: ZB
authors.lastname: Arencibia
authors.forename: Alberto López
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Leyva
authors.forename: Yordanka Mejías
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Peña
authors.forename: Alba Rosa González
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Reyes
authors.forename: Maurilys Acosta
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Nápolez
authors.forename: Demetrio
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Carbonell Perdomo
authors.forename: Edita Fernández
authors.initials: EF
authors.lastname: Manzano
authors.forename: Imti
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Choonara
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000191:economics / Q000600:supply & distribution / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003157:Community Pharmacy Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003462:Cuba / Q000453:epidemiology; D003625:Data Collection; D016527:Drug Costs; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D015995:Prevalence
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants