Epilepsy control with phenobarbital or phenytoin in rural south India: the Yelandur study

Current beliefs and attitudes regarding epilepsy in Mali

“…Because of the lack of neurologists in developing countries, all health-care providers need to be specially trained to improve their diagnostic and intervention skills [8,9,16]. Community awareness campaigns and free seizure medication have shown effectiveness in India, Kenya, Ethiopia, and China [9,28]. However, the present study underscores the importance of ongoing education programs.…”

A 3 year audit of adult epilepsy care in a Nigerian tertiary hospital (2011-2013)

“…[24,25] However, adult neurologists in Nigeria prefer carbamazepine to phenobarbitone due to feared neurocognitive side-effects of the latter drug. [26,27] Results from earlier publications have shown that phenobarbitone has efficacy profile similar to newer AEDs, [28] and has retention rates of 84% and 76% after 1 and 2 years, respectively. [23,28] The frequency of feared behavioral and cognitive side effects of phenobarbitone is very low.…”

“…[26,27] Results from earlier publications have shown that phenobarbitone has efficacy profile similar to newer AEDs, [28] and has retention rates of 84% and 76% after 1 and 2 years, respectively. [23,28] The frequency of feared behavioral and cognitive side effects of phenobarbitone is very low. [23] The probability of AED retention among patients in this study is low, as close to 48% of patients had their medication changed at least once in the course of treatment without attaining recommended maximum dosage.…”

Health service provision for people with epilepsy in sub-Saharan Africa: A situational review

“…In the Nakuru project, phenobarbital had similar efficacy and tolerability compared to carbamazepine [19]. Based on the success of trials and the cost advantage of phenobarbital in India [104], Brazil [105], and China [106], WHO has suggested the use of phenobarbital as a drug of choice for treating epilepsy in resource-poor settings [107,108]. This cost-effectiveness has been observed in the Malian [72] and Zambian studies [98,109], where the overall cost of epilepsy management is between US$15 and US$25 per person per year, which is substantially less than the expenses of treating other chronic health conditions.…”