Dr. Daniel Owusu Fordjour, the Medical Director of Altmed Clinic, has warned the public not to put a spoon or any object into the mouth of epileptic patients having convulsions or seizures.
That, he said, would endanger their lives, but they should clear their surroundings and use soft, flat-edged materials like carpets and pillows under their heads to reduce the risk of them hurting their heads.
Speaking in an interview with Max Morning Agenda in Accra on Tuesday, Fordjour erased the notion that patients might swallow their tongues when a spoon or wooden ladle was not put inside their mouths.
He stated that victims might break the spoon while the convulsion was going on and even swallow it, which could risk their health and endanger them more.
“When you meet a person with epilepsy having convulsion, just leave the person for his or her body to work but clear any items around the person that might endanger him or her,” the doctor stated.
He said one could support the patient when the person was about to fall and gently put the person on the ground, emphasizing that the movement should not be restrained as it was an uncontrollable act.
“Restraining them might result in hurting yourself or the patient since the patient could violently hit you with his or her hand or leg. After the seizure, put the person to a recovery position by turning the person to sleep on his or her left or right side to aid in breathing” Fordjour said.
He also stated that epilepsy was not contagious and urged the public to assist those with the ailments while erasing the mentality that it was a demonic attack.
Source: Joyceline Natally Cudjoe
