Prevalence of active convulsive epilepsy in an urban slum in Enugu South East Nigeria

PURPOSE To determine the prevalence of active convulsive epilepsy and treatment gap in two Urban slums in Enugu South East Nigeria. METHODS A 3 phase cross-sectional descriptive study was done to survey individuals ≥ 15 years in 2 slums in Enugu, South East Nigeria. RESULTS The prevalence of epilepsy was 6.0 (95% CI: 5.9-6.0) per 1000 (men 4.4/1000, 95% CI: 2.3-6.4, women 7.8/1000, 95% CI: 4.9-10.4), p=0.06. The peak age of active convulsive epilepsy was 40-44 years (11.2 per 1000) with two smaller peaks at 25-29 and ≥ 50 years. The age and sex adjusted prevalence using WHO standard population and 2006 Nigerian census population were 5.9 per 1000 (95% CI: 4.0-7.9) and 5.4 per 1000 (95% CI: 3.4-7.4). CONCLUSION The prevalence of epilepsy is high in urban slums in Enugu. Nationwide studies should be done to find out the true prevalence in the country.