WORLD DRIVE TO COMBAT EPILEPSY

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23116, 1 December 1949, Page 6

WORLD DRIVE TO COMBAT EPILEPSY

(By George Franks, a Reuter Correspondent). A world campaign is being planned here to help over ten million people suffering from epilepsy. With the tension of modern life increasing the number of . epileptics by half a million a year, medical authorities arc planning a, new drive against the diseaseThe International League to combat epilepsy is being drastically reorganised, its scope widened, and. its methods modernised. The head of its new Secretariat-General is Dr. Ledeboer, Director of the Netherlands Epilepsy Institute here, and a recognised world authority on the disease. His appointment is regarded in medical circles as a world-like tribute both to him personally and also’ to Holland where the battle against epilepsy is , regarded as “the best organised in the world.” Dr. Ledeboer has had wide experience in tackling this disease in his * own country where there are at least 60,000 known sufferers. His research * work has also shown that in most European countries about one person t in every 10 has a tendency towards . the disease, even if they do not show i any outward symptoms. That means that Holland is faced with a possible ' increase of 1,000,000 in its epileptic patients, but there is so little general < interest in the effects of the disease and so much ignorance of its dangers, that up to (he present most countries A have failed- to pay as much attention to combating it as they have to the , more widely-feared diseases such as cancer and tuberculosis. The general .. attitude has been that epilepsy is more or less hereditary and therefore in- i curable. Few Under Treatment It has been estimated that or the , world's 10,uUU,0uu epileptics bareiy buu.uuu are under expert treatment. » iet researen by or. j_,edeooer and outers nas shown that suttaDie . treatment can limit the number of serious cases, save most patients from . disablement and ensure tne return of many ot them to normal lue. About v du per cent, of epileptic children ha\e been cured when treated in time. Sue- - cess in treatment is largely the result ot careful study ot tne causes of tne * disease. Outside factors are just as frequent’ and as damaging as hereditary tactors , and often yield just as readily to treatment- in brief, says Dr. nedeboer, “if action is taken in time m almost any case, there is a good •. cnance of producing a cure.” Failure to begin treatment immediately the • disease is recognised means grave danger of permanent disablement. So - 1 - Ur. Ledeboer insists that it is far cheaper in both money, manpower and ■ social happiness to spend on preventing or curing epilepsy than to have -] tne perpetual expense of the care support of Incurable victims. That iff the basis of his work in Holland. ( At first he met with the same Indifference and ignorance which still hampers the fight against the disease in most countries, but by mobilising private interest and help, he graduallybrought home to the Government the need for a definite plan to combat the disease. After two private organisations had met expenses for many years from their own resources, tne Dutch Government has now granted a subsidy on the grounds that “the fight against this disease in Holland is now further advanced than in any other country.” Better Medical Facilities After many years of work, the Dutch institutions now consider that they have at their disposal much better medical and organising facilities than are available in any other country. The original research station where Dr. Ledeboer has done so much of his work has recently been enriched by a clinic named aiter Queen Julianas grandmother, Queen. Emma. This is equipped with most modern medical apparatus and instruments, both for preliminary examinations and for therapeutics. Among the many novel instruments is an up-to-the-minute version of the American electroencephalograph, which measures and records the functions of the brain, and locates the exact spot where the trouble occurs. The clinic also has instruments devised and invented by Dr. Ledeboer and his associates for detecting as well as treating various kinds of epilepsy. In the Dutch campaign against epilepsy, special attention has been paid to the more intimate prober lems of the disease. Through a long series of research systems, plans have been . devised which help to prevent marriage between Dutch couples who are likely to pass the disease on to their children. Another svstem provides for considerable selective care in appointing men in Holland to such vulnerable professions as air pilots, chauffeurs, engine-drivers, vital public, utility supervision and any position in which a sudden attack would endanger the lives of others. The Dutch Epilepsy Institute has also devoted a great deal of time to after-care of wounded soldiers. After the first world war, about 30 per cent, of servicemen who had recevied brain or head injuries became epileptics, but as the result of improved treatment and examination, only about three per cent, of servicemen who suffered similar injuries in the second world war became epileptics. The International League to. combat epilepsy has concentrated since its foundation in 1903 on exchange of information about the treatment of the disease but it has now decided to enlarge its scope by drawing greater attention to the ravages of tne disease and adopting more active measures in launching a world campaign against it.