title: Prevalence of neurological disorders in Al Quseir, Egypt: methodological aspects.
abstract: Methodology and strategy play a very important role in epidemiological studies. Determination of the study area, geographical features, facilities, difficulties, and key personnel from the same area are important factors for successful methodology. Over 31 months (July 1, 2009 to January 31, 2012), a screening and an examination survey were carried out to ascertain the prevalence of epilepsy, stroke, dementia, cerebellar ataxia, migraine, cerebral palsy, Parkinsonism, chorea, athetosis, dystonia, trigeminal neuralgia, Bell's palsy, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord disorders, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorders in Al Quseir, Red Sea Governorate, Egypt. A total of 33,285 people were screened by three neurologists in a door-to-door manner, including every door, using a standardized Arabic questionnaire to detect any subject with a neurological disorder. The methodological aspects of this project were carried out through eight phases: (1) data collection; (2) preparation; (3) screening; (4) case ascertainment; (5) investigations; (6) classifications; (7) data entry; and (8) statistics and tabulations. The results of this study reveal that the total prevalence of neurological disorders in Al Quseir was 4.6% and higher among females (5.2%) than males (3.9%). The highest prevalence was recorded in the elderly population (60+ years [8.0%]) and among the age group 18-39 years (5.4%).
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Assiut University, Assiut, Egypt.
authors.forename: Hamdy
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: El-Tallawy
authors.forename: Wafa
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Farghaly
authors.forename: Nabil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Metwally
authors.forename: Tarek
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Rageh
authors.forename: Ghaydaa A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Shehata
authors.forename: Reda
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Badry
authors.forename: Esam El
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Moselhy
authors.forename: Mahmoud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hassan
authors.forename: Mohamed M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Sayed
authors.forename: Ahmed A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Abdelwarith
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hamed
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Shaaban
authors.forename: Talal
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mohamed
authors.forename: Mohamed Abd El
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Hamed
authors.forename: Mr
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kandil
keywords: demographic data; methodological aspects; prevalence
references.citation: J Neurol Sci. 2002 Jun 15;198(1-2):3-7
references.pmid: 12039656
references.citation: Neuroepidemiology. 2004 Nov-Dec;23(6):310-6
references.pmid: 15297799
references.citation: Epilepsia. 2008 Jul;49(7):1230-8
references.pmid: 18363709
references.citation: Neuroepidemiology. 2001 Oct;20(4):225-31
references.pmid: 11684897
references.citation: Indian J Med Res. 2006 Aug;124(2):163-72
references.pmid: 17015930
references.citation: Neuroepidemiology. 2010;35(3):185-90
references.pmid: 20664292
references.citation: Neuroepidemiology. 2004 Nov-Dec;23(6):261-8
references.pmid: 15297791