Public familiarity with, knowledge of, and predictors of negative attitudes toward epilepsy in Thailand

The purpose of this nationwide survey was to assess familiarity with and knowledge of epilepsy, as well as to identify predictors of negative attitudes toward people with epilepsy, in Thailand. Of the 1581 people interviewed, 80.8% were familiar with the word epilepsy, but few knew anyone with the condition. The main reason given for avoiding helping a seizure victim was a lack of proper first-aid knowledge, not a negative attitude toward the person. The factors predicting negative attitudes in the Thai population were low educational level, unfamiliarity with epilepsy, and the misconception that epilepsy is a form of insanity. Different from most previous studies worldwide, the attitudes of friends and parents toward people with epilepsy were strongly positive. Social awareness of the public organization Epilepsy Society of Thailand was low; only 4.6% of the respondents knew about it. These data should be considered in a nationwide strategy to alleviate social discrimination against people with epilepsy.