WHO guidelines a failure in Indian context

With a little over 1000 neurologists across the country,need based experts in related surgeries remains a major challenge for the country. Like the rest of India,even Gujarat has a high incidence of stroke,epilepsy,migraine,Central Nervous System (CNS) infections like Tubercular Meningitis (TBM) and neuro degenerative disorders like Dementia,Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. The general consensus was that a number of therapies and newer drugs must be cautiously used in the Indian context.

While the general consensus reached upon in dealing with cases of stroke was that asprin is a better option when compared to a combination of therapies (like thrombolysis,stenting of arteries,removal of plaque,carolid endarterectomy) as it is the cheaper and easily available alternative. The consensus on treating cases of CNS tuberculosis was that steroids should be given in all cases. In case of epilepsy,the consensus reached upon is that among the seven newer drugs and the four old drugs,Indian doctors should stick to the older ones.

The reason,pointed out Dr. K Radhakrishnan ,Dean and Head of the Department of Neurology at the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences & Technology (SCTIMS),Trivandrum is,”we have experience in handling the old drugs while the new ones are costly and can be risky to the Indian patient.” Infact,20 percent of the epilepsy patients do not react to any of the two categories of drugs due to either surgical or genetic reasons.