The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on frail health systems of low- and middle-income countries: The case of epilepsy in the rural areas of the Bolivian Chaco.
Epilepsy Behav
; 118: 107917, 2021 05.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1139629
ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION:
The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has put some health systems under pressure, especially in low- and middle-income countries. We aimed at evaluating the impact of COVID-19 emergency on the management of people with epilepsy (PWE) living in the rural communities of the Gran Chaco area of the Plurinational State of Bolivia. MATERIALS ANDMETHODS:
We selected a sample of PWE living in the rural communities of the Bolivian Chaco. A standardized questionnaire was developed, consisting of six questions addressing drug availability, drug discontinuation, personnel responsible for drug retrieval during the lockdown, and the presence of seizures in the two months preceding the interview. Questionnaires were administered by community health workers of the rural health centers in September 2020.RESULTS:
Seventy PWE (38 men, 54.3%; mean age 26.9⯱â¯16.7) were interviewed. During the lockdown the large majority of them (nâ¯=â¯51, 73.9%) reported an irregular medication intake mainly due to the lack of antiseizure medications in the local health posts, leading to an increase in seizure frequency.CONCLUSION:
The COVID-19 pandemic has unmasked the frailty of the Bolivian health system, especially for the management of chronic diseases such as epilepsy in the rural communities.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Epilepsy
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Randomized controlled trials
Limits:
Adolescent
/
Adult
/
Aged
/
Child
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Young adult
Country/Region as subject:
South America
/
Bolivia
Language:
English
Journal:
Epilepsy Behav
Journal subject:
Behavioral Sciences
/
Neurology
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
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