Although some people still believe in the myth that epilepsy, which is also known as seizure disorder, is related to jinns, science has proved that it is a disease related to the brain.
April 16 is World Epilepsy Awareness Day, an international effort dedicated to increase awareness about epilepsy worldwide. The day is also known as purple day.
Similar efforts were shown at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center (KFSHRC) Jeddah by organizing the second epilepsy awareness day at its premises under the supervision of the neuroscience department. There were stalls of epilepsy support and information centers with information on the different procedures of epilepsy treatment, including long-term monitoring, medications, neurosurgery, neuropsychiatry, neuroradiology, diagnostic test, social or psychological support, public information meetings and educational outreach programs for schools.
Dr. Youssef Al-Said, chairman of the neuroscience department and director of the epilepsy center at KFSHRC, told Arab News in an exclusive interview that King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center is the main center for treatment in the country.
“We treat all kinds of epilepsy patients at the King Faisal Epilepsy Treatment Center. We have a comprehensive epilepsy program, consisting of epilogists, doctors, nurses, surgeons, psychiatrists, neurologists,” said Dr. Al-Said.
KFSHRC is one of the excellent centers in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East that receives patients from around the Kingdom.
“We proceed with the treatment according to the needs of the patient. We treat him medically or surgically, and we observe or monitor the patient with long-term monitoring instruments to find out the main cause under the observation of experts,” he explained.
He also explained that many people related epilepsy with supernatural things and acts of jinns. However, epilepsy is a neurological condition that affects the nervous system. Epilepsy is also known as seizure disorder, similar to seizures not caused by known medical conditions, like alcohol withdrawal or extremely low blood sugar.
The seizures in epilepsy may be related to brain injury or a family tendency, but most of the time the cause is unknown. The word "epilepsy" does not indicate anything about the cause of the person's seizures, what type they are, or their severity.
“After finding the seizure problem with long-term monitoring, we do our surgical procedure and MRI, but if we can’t find the problem through this procedure, we do intracranial monitoring of the brain,” said Dr. Al-Said.
About 70 percent of epileptic patients are treated medically, while 20 percent are treated by surgery. The rest is treated with other treatments, like left vagus nerve stimulation, in which they install a pacemaker to inhabit the brain epileptic discharge, or by giving a ketogenic diet to the patient, which helps reducing the incidence of seizures. Relaxation and psychotherapy are also used to treat epileptic patients.
“Installation of a pacemaker is done in a few countries in the world, and KFSHRC is one of the hospitals in the Kingdom that is doing this surgery. The peacemaker reduces seizures by 50 percent,” said Dr. Al-Said.
The doctor explained that epilepsy is a common and curable disease, and that in the US almost 3.5 million people are affected with epilepsy.
“We need to believe that epilepsy is an organic disease; there is a legion in the brain that causes the seizures,” said Dr. Al-Said.
He emphasized the importance of awareness about epilepsy for the public. A patient should be referred to an epilepsy clinic in a specialized hospital, and the family should know where to take the patient.
“I want to say that epilepsy should not carry a bad stigma. It is not an inherited disease, and it is not transmitted at all, so marriage and pregnancy for such people are normal. Just during pregnancy, patients can take antiepileptic medicines with the recommendation of a doctor, which has the very least affect on the baby. Also, taking extra folic acid can save the baby from any harm,” said Dr. Al-Said.
Dr. Al-Said further said they believed 120,000 people are affected with epilepsy in Saudi Arabia, according to the national epilepsy registry record. Around 10,000 patients need surgical treatment. King Faisal Hospital Riyadh dealt with 650 epilepsy cases in the last six years; the Jeddah hospital treated 240 cases with successful results.
About 80 percent of the epileptic patients become seizure-free and can live their life normally after the treatment; only 20 percent suffer for their whole life or have to take medicines.
“I think it is extremely valuable to know what is epilepsy, especially for people who are suffering from the problem. This awareness day gives a lot of experience on how to deal with surgical intervention and problems. It’s a day we celebrate once a year to be part of the world and to carry out our social responsibility,” said Najeeb Yamani, director of community relations.
Many visitors said that awareness programs could give hope to families that treatment is available. It is necessary to bring awareness, and people should learn the importance of a comprehensive program about epilepsy in the country, because it is an extremely challenging disease for the family and society. In Jeddah there is no epilepsy society, which is crucial.
“Raising awareness is essential, and we are not only trying to make society aware and treat patients, but also to train doctors,” said Parwaiz Khalid, acting director of clinical services at KFSHRC.
A visitor, Nada Kavlee, also praised the efforts of the hospital about the awareness program, but she also emphasized on spreading awareness about epilepsy at schools, universities and public places.
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Epilepsy is curable, not linked with jinns
Epilepsy is curable, not linked with jinns
US twin astronaut, Russian to spend year in orbit
CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida: A former space shuttle commander whose twin brother is married to former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords will attempt the longest spaceflight ever by an American.
NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko will spend an entire year aboard the International Space Station beginning in 2015.
Both countries’ space agencies announced the names of the two veteran spacefliers on Monday. The extended mission was approved almost two months ago to provide a medical foundation for future missions around the moon, as well as far-flung trips to asteroids and Mars.
Both men already have lived aboard the space station for six months. NASA wanted experienced space station astronauts to streamline the amount of training necessary for a one-year stint. Officials had said the list of candidates was very short. They will begin training next year.
“Their skills and previous experience aboard the space station align with the mission’s requirements,” Bill Gerstenmaier, head of human exploration for NASA, said in a statement. “The one-year increment will expand the bounds of how we live and work in space and will increase our knowledge regarding the effects of microgravity on humans as we prepare for future missions beyond low-Earth orbit.”
Kelly’s identical twin brother, Mark Kelly, retired from the astronaut corps last year and moved to Tucson, Arizona, his wife’s hometown. The former congresswoman was critically wounded in an assassination attempt in January 2011, while Scott Kelly was living aboard the space station.
NASA said neither crew member was available Monday to comment and that news conferences would be held next week to outline the mission.
Astronauts normally spend about four to six months aboard the space station. The longest an American lived there was seven months, several years back.
Russia, though, will continue to hold the world space endurance record.
Four cosmonauts spent at least a year aboard the old Mir space station. A Russian physician, Valery Polyakov, logged nearly 15 continuous months there in the mid-1990s.
Boris Morukov, head of the Moscow-based Institute for Medical and Biological Problems, Russia’s main space medicine research center, told the Interfax news agency that communications and food rations for Kelly and Kornienko may be limited during their yearlong mission to better simulate interplanetary travel.
Kelly and Kornienko will launch aboard a Russian rocket from Kazakhstan. Americans must buy seats on Russian spacecraft now that NASA’s shuttles have retired to museums, until private US companies have vessels capable of carrying human passengers. That’s still four or five years off.
Kelly is a 48-year-old, divorced Navy captain with two daughters. Kornienko, 52, a rocket engineer, is married with a daughter.
“We have chosen the most responsible, skilled and enthusiastic crew members to expand space exploration, and we have full confidence in them,” Russian Space Agency chief Vladimir Popovkin said in the announcement.
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AP writer Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow contributed to this report.
___
Online:
NASA: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html
NASA astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko will spend an entire year aboard the International Space Station beginning in 2015.
Both countries’ space agencies announced the names of the two veteran spacefliers on Monday. The extended mission was approved almost two months ago to provide a medical foundation for future missions around the moon, as well as far-flung trips to asteroids and Mars.
Both men already have lived aboard the space station for six months. NASA wanted experienced space station astronauts to streamline the amount of training necessary for a one-year stint. Officials had said the list of candidates was very short. They will begin training next year.
“Their skills and previous experience aboard the space station align with the mission’s requirements,” Bill Gerstenmaier, head of human exploration for NASA, said in a statement. “The one-year increment will expand the bounds of how we live and work in space and will increase our knowledge regarding the effects of microgravity on humans as we prepare for future missions beyond low-Earth orbit.”
Kelly’s identical twin brother, Mark Kelly, retired from the astronaut corps last year and moved to Tucson, Arizona, his wife’s hometown. The former congresswoman was critically wounded in an assassination attempt in January 2011, while Scott Kelly was living aboard the space station.
NASA said neither crew member was available Monday to comment and that news conferences would be held next week to outline the mission.
Astronauts normally spend about four to six months aboard the space station. The longest an American lived there was seven months, several years back.
Russia, though, will continue to hold the world space endurance record.
Four cosmonauts spent at least a year aboard the old Mir space station. A Russian physician, Valery Polyakov, logged nearly 15 continuous months there in the mid-1990s.
Boris Morukov, head of the Moscow-based Institute for Medical and Biological Problems, Russia’s main space medicine research center, told the Interfax news agency that communications and food rations for Kelly and Kornienko may be limited during their yearlong mission to better simulate interplanetary travel.
Kelly and Kornienko will launch aboard a Russian rocket from Kazakhstan. Americans must buy seats on Russian spacecraft now that NASA’s shuttles have retired to museums, until private US companies have vessels capable of carrying human passengers. That’s still four or five years off.
Kelly is a 48-year-old, divorced Navy captain with two daughters. Kornienko, 52, a rocket engineer, is married with a daughter.
“We have chosen the most responsible, skilled and enthusiastic crew members to expand space exploration, and we have full confidence in them,” Russian Space Agency chief Vladimir Popovkin said in the announcement.
___
AP writer Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow contributed to this report.
___
Online:
NASA: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html
US, Russia name crew for yearlong space mission
MOSCOW: NASA and Russia’s Roscosmos have named the two men who will spend a year aboard the International Space Station to gather more data about the effects of weightlessness on humans.
NASA’s Scott Kelly and Roscosmos’ Mikhail Kornienko will take part in the mission set to start in spring 2015. The space agencies said in a statement Monday that the flight would help reduce health risks for planned NASA missions around the moon, an asteroid and ultimately Mars.
Crews so far have done only six-month stints on the station.
William Gerstenmaier, NASA’s associate administrator, said the mission “will increase our knowledge regarding the effects of microgravity on humans as we prepare for future missions beyond low-Earth orbit.”
Kelly and Kornienko will start training for the mission next year.
NASA’s Scott Kelly and Roscosmos’ Mikhail Kornienko will take part in the mission set to start in spring 2015. The space agencies said in a statement Monday that the flight would help reduce health risks for planned NASA missions around the moon, an asteroid and ultimately Mars.
Crews so far have done only six-month stints on the station.
William Gerstenmaier, NASA’s associate administrator, said the mission “will increase our knowledge regarding the effects of microgravity on humans as we prepare for future missions beyond low-Earth orbit.”
Kelly and Kornienko will start training for the mission next year.
Exercise before school improves concentration
COPENHAGEN: Cycling or walking to school increases a child’s ability to concentrate in the classroom, the results of a Danish study published Friday showed.
Children who were driven to school, or who took public transport, performed less well in a test measuring concentration levels, than those who had walked or cycled, a joint study by researchers at the universities in Copenhagen and Aarhus found.
“The exercise one uses to transport oneself to school is reflected in the level of concentration one has circa four hours later,” said Niels Egelund, a co-author of the report.
The results surprised the researchers, as their hypothesis originally focused on the effects of eating breakfast and lunch on pupils’ ability to concentrate.
“The results showed that having breakfast and lunch has an impact, but not very much compared to having exercised,” Egelund told AFP.
“As a third-grade pupil, if you exercise and bike to school, your ability to concentrate increases to the equivalent of someone half a year further in their studies,” he added.
In the survey, taken by 19,527 pupils aged five to 19 years, participants were asked about their exercise habits and were then given a basic test measuring their concentration.
“Most people know the feeling of being refreshed after having exercised, but it is surprising that the effect lasts for so long,” Egelund said.
Japan’s new nuclear-proof robot gets stage fright
YOKOHAMA: A Japanese robot designed to withstand high levels of radiation and extreme heat at damaged nuclear plants such as Fukushima froze on Wednesday on its first public demonstration.
Despite being home to the largest number of industrial robots in the world, Japan did not have a device capable of entering the damaged Fukushima nuclear facility after last year’s devastating earthquake and tsunami.
Instead, Japan brought in US robots to survey the extent of the damage inside the reactor buildings.
Toshiba Corp. unveiled Japan’s own nuclear-proof robot on Wednesday, a four-legged device able to carry up to 20 kg of equipment and capable of lifting itself up if it falls over on uneven surfaces and amid debris.
During the demonstration, the robot experienced a case of stage fright. The shuffling Tetrapod locked up and suddenly froze after it tried to balance itself, forcing technicians to carry it away.
It is the second time such Japanese robotic technology has experienced problems. Last October, a crawling robot developed by the Chiba Institute of Technology lost connection with operators and was abandoned inside Fukushima’s No. 2 reactor building.
Vatican launches new Latin academy with Tweet
VATICAN CITY: The head of the Vatican’s pontifical council for culture on Wednesday announced the launch of a new academy for the teaching of Latin with a Tweet written in the ancient language.
“Hodie una cum Ivano Dionigi novam aperiemus academiam pontificiam latinitatis a Benedicto conditam, hora XVII, via Conciliationis V,” Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, an avid Tweeter, told his online followers.
The message translates as: “Today with Ivano Dionigi we will launch the new pontifical academy for Latin wanted by Benedict XVI at 1700 hours at number 5, Via della Conciliazione” — the main avenue leading to the Vatican.
Latin expert Dionigi is the new dean of the academy, which will promote written and spoken Latin in Catholic institutions like seminaries.
Pope Benedict XVI earlier this month announced the creation of the “Academia Latinitatis” to promote the study of Latin culture and language at a time when knowledge of Latin is rapidly being lost among Catholic clergy and believers.
Latin remains the official language of the Vatican but is now rarely used in Catholic ceremonies. Ever since being elected to the papacy, Benedict has promoted greater use of Latin as a way of countering divisions in the Church.
“Hodie una cum Ivano Dionigi novam aperiemus academiam pontificiam latinitatis a Benedicto conditam, hora XVII, via Conciliationis V,” Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, an avid Tweeter, told his online followers.
The message translates as: “Today with Ivano Dionigi we will launch the new pontifical academy for Latin wanted by Benedict XVI at 1700 hours at number 5, Via della Conciliazione” — the main avenue leading to the Vatican.
Latin expert Dionigi is the new dean of the academy, which will promote written and spoken Latin in Catholic institutions like seminaries.
Pope Benedict XVI earlier this month announced the creation of the “Academia Latinitatis” to promote the study of Latin culture and language at a time when knowledge of Latin is rapidly being lost among Catholic clergy and believers.
Latin remains the official language of the Vatican but is now rarely used in Catholic ceremonies. Ever since being elected to the papacy, Benedict has promoted greater use of Latin as a way of countering divisions in the Church.
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