CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · International Journal of Epilepsy 2018; 05(02): S6
DOI: 10.1055/s-0039-1694870
Abstracts of 20th Joint Annual Conference of Indian Epilepsy Society and Indian Epilepsy Association (ECON 2019)
Indian Epilepsy Society

Perception of Epilepsy Stigma in School Children and Teachers’ Awareness and Attitude towards Epilepsy—A South Indian Cohort Study

G. V.K.R. Goud
1   Department of Neurology, Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
,
Balakrishna, Hemalatha, Rajeswari,
Vasavi Chinta
1   Department of Neurology, Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
,
Suryaprabha,
Rukmini Mrudula
1   Department of Neurology, Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
,
Rupam Borgohain
1   Department of Neurology, Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
› Author Affiliations

Subject Editor:
Further Information

Publication History

Publication Date:
31 July 2019 (online)

Background: School drop outs, due to stigma, due to epilepsy is a serious problem in India and school children and teachers play a dominant role as backbones for any awareness program. Understanding the attitudes and stigma toward epilepsy of school children and teachers may influence the society in the form of improving quality of life of people with epilepsy. There are not many studies addressing this aspect, especially in India.

Aim: and Objectives To study the perception of epilepsy stigma in school children and the awareness and attitude of teachers toward epilepsy in Singareni Collieries, an area of Telangana, in South India.

Materials and Methods: A total of 508 school children and 30 teachers of three schools were enrolled. The stigma scale of epilepsy (SSE) was applied to school children and a standardized questionnaire was applied to teachers to assess the awareness and attitude toward epilepsy.

Results: The overall mean score for epilepsy stigma perception was high being 54 + 2.5. The SSE score for women (55.8) was higher than that for men (51.5). Only 25% admitted are well informed about epilepsy. But 23% respondents thought that epilepsy effected the education of a person.

Conclusion:s Perceived stigma was found to be a common problem in school children. Lack of awareness and negative attitude of teachers against people with epilepsy is likely to contribute to perceived feeling of stigma. The Results reinforce the need for creating awareness among school children and teachers addressing misconceptions attached to epilepsy.