Prevalence, Demographic Profile, and Psychological Aspects of Epilepsy in North-Western India: A Community-Based Observational Study.

AIMS: This study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of active epilepsy, assess the sociodemographic profile, and psychological aspects of epilepsy in the Jaipur district of Rajasthan, India. METHODS: We conducted a community-based, cross-sectional observational study covering both rural (n = 165,660) and urban (n = 179,142) populations of Jaipur district using a house-to-house survey. An adapted, pre-designed World Health Organization screening questionnaire was used to identify the cases. Those confirmed by neurologists as true seizures were included in the study. Cases were classified as per the International League against Epilepsy recommendation. Global Mental Health Assessment Tool electronic questionnaire was used to analyze psychological aspects of cases. The caregivers of the patients participated in the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) survey. RESULTS: A total of 380 patients (258 men, 122 women) were identified with active epilepsy. The estimated prevalence of active epilepsy was 1.1/1,000 population and 71% of cases belonged to low socioeconomic classes. Primary treatment gap was documented in 18.8% of cases in our study, 38% of cases were non-compliant to treatment with poorer compliance in those on pol-therapy, 76% had some psychiatric disorder, anxiety and depression being the commonest, and positive family history of epilepsy was found in 4.7%. KAP survey revealed that only 15% of the respondents believed that epilepsy is non-curable, 74% denied its infectious nature, 26% believed that epilepsy occurs due to past sins, and 81% said that they would not marry persons with epilepsy. CONCLUSION: A relatively low prevalence (1.1/1,000) of active epilepsy and a smaller primary treatment gap (18.8%) was found in our study population. Almost three-fourth of cases had an associated psychological problem, Though caregivers were aware of the nature of disease, majority would not prefer to marry a person suffering from epilepsy.

Primary intraventricular hemorrhage: clinical features, risk factors, etiology, and yield of diagnostic cerebral angiography.

BACKGROUND: Primary intraventricular hemorrhage (PIVH) is a rare neurological disorder, with bleeding confined to the ventricles only, without recognizable parenchymal or subarachnoid component. AIM: The purpose of this retrospective study was to identify clinical features, predisposing risk factors, etiology, radiological features and yield of diagnostic cerebral angiography in identifying the etiological causes. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: Records of patients admitted in neurology division were analyzed in a tertiary care teaching hospital. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analyzed the records of 27 patients with PIVH evaluated and treated at our institute from August 2010 to April 2013. PIVH was diagnosed as hemorrhage in the ventricles only, detected by computed tomography scan without evidence of intraparenchymal, subarachnoid hemorrhage or intraventricular hemorrhage associated with trauma. CT angiography (CTA) alone was done in 10 patients (37.03%), digital subtraction angiography (DSA) in 2 patients (7.4%) and both CTA as well as DSA was done in 15 patients (55.5%). STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Categorical and continuous data were analyzed using SPSS version 17. RESULTS: 17 (62.96%) patients were females and 10 (37.03%) were males with ratio of F:M= 1.7:1. Headache was the commonest mode of presentation (85.18%). Hypertension was most common predisposing factor (29.62%) followed by arterio-venous malformations (AVMs) (25.92%), moyamoya disease (MMD) (11.11%), lenticuostriate artery aneurysm (LSA) (11.11%), arterial dissections (7.4%) and dural arteriovenous fistula (dAVF) (3.7%). CONCLUSIONS: PIVH is rare and hypertension is important predisposing factor. Yield of cerebral angiography is high in diagnosing the etiology. AVMs and other rare etiological causes like MMD, LSA aneurysm, arterial dissection, and dAVF should be kept in mind with a high index of suspicion and warrants cerebral angiography in them, as some of the causes are potentially treatable.

Subarachnoid hemorrhage with transient ischemic attack: another masquerader in cerebral venous thrombosis.

Cerebral venous thrombosis has a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations that may mimic many other neurological disorders and lead to frequent misdiagnoses or delay in diagnosis. The most frequent symptoms and signs are headache, seizures, focal deficits, and papilledema. A number of rare atypical manifestations have been described. Cerebral venous thrombosis may present with an isolated intracranial hypertension type picture, thunderclap headache, attacks of migraine with aura, isolated psychiatric disturbances, pulsatile tinnitus, isolated or multiple cranial nerve involvement, and occasionally as subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) or transient ischemic attack. Our patient presented with thunderclap headache and transient ischemic attack like episode with obvious SAH on CT scan. Acute SAH suggests the presence of a vascular lesion, such as ruptured aneurysm, and CVT is not generally considered in the diagnostic workup of SAH. The case emphasizes the importance of cerebral venous study in nonaneurysmal cases of SAH. It is important to have a high index of suspicion in such atypical cases to avoid delay in diagnosis.

The Global Mental Health Assessment Tool-validation in Hindi: A validity and feasibility study.

BACKGROUND: A computer-assisted interview, the Global Mental Health Assessment Tool-validation (GMHAT/PC) has been developed to assist general practitioners and other health professionals to make a quick, convenient, yet reasonably comprehensive standardized mental health assessment. GMHAT/PC has been translated into various languages including Hindi. This is the first study conducted in India, using the Hindi version GMHAT/PC of the series of studies assessing its validity in different cultures. AIM: The study aims to assess the feasibility of using a computer assisted diagnostic interview by health professionals and to examine the level of agreement between the Hindi version GMHAT/PC diagnosis and psychiatrists' ICD-10 based clinical diagnosis. DESIGN: Cross-sectional validation study. SETTING: Psychiatric clinic of a General Hospital and an out patient (Neurology) clinic in the Teaching General Hospital in Jaipur, India. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All consecutive patients attending the psychiatric out patient clinic were interviewed using GMHAT/PC and psychiatrists made a diagnosis applying ICD-10 criteria for a period of six weeks. A small sample of subjects was interviewed in a similar way in a Neurology clinic for four weeks. RESULTS: The mean duration of interview was under 17 minutes. Most patients were pleased that they were asked about every aspect of their mental health. The agreement between psychologists' GMHAT/PC interview diagnoses and psychiatrists' clinical diagnoses was excellent (Kappa 0.96, sensitivity 1.00, and specificity 0.94). CONCLUSION: GMHAT/PC Hindi version detected mental disorders accurately and it was feasible to use GMHAT/PC in Indian settings.