Assistive Artificial Intelligence in Epilepsy and Its Impact on Epilepsy Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
Epilepsy, one of the most common neurological diseases in the world, affects around 50 million people, with a notably disproportionate prevalence in individuals residing in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Alarmingly, over 80% of annual epilepsy-related fatalities occur within LMICs. The bu...
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MDPI AG
2025-05-01
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| author | Nabin Koirala Shishir Raj Adhikari Mukesh Adhikari Taruna Yadav Abdul Rauf Anwar Dumitru Ciolac Bibhusan Shrestha Ishan Adhikari Bishesh Khanal Muthuraman Muthuraman |
| author_facet | Nabin Koirala Shishir Raj Adhikari Mukesh Adhikari Taruna Yadav Abdul Rauf Anwar Dumitru Ciolac Bibhusan Shrestha Ishan Adhikari Bishesh Khanal Muthuraman Muthuraman |
| author_sort | Nabin Koirala |
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| description | Epilepsy, one of the most common neurological diseases in the world, affects around 50 million people, with a notably disproportionate prevalence in individuals residing in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Alarmingly, over 80% of annual epilepsy-related fatalities occur within LMICs. The burden of the disease assessed using Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) shows that epilepsy accounts for about 13 million DALYs per year, with LMICs bearing most of this burden due to the disproportionately high diagnostic and treatment gaps. Furthermore, LMICs also endure a significant financial burden, with the cost of epilepsy reaching up to 0.5% of the Gross National Product (GNP) in some cases. Difficulties in the appropriate diagnosis and treatment are complicated by the lack of trained medical specialists. Therefore, in these conditions, adopting artificial intelligence (AI)-based solutions may improve epilepsy care in LMICs. In this theoretical and critical review, we focus on epilepsy and its management in LMICs, as well as on the employment of AI technologies to aid epilepsy care in LMICs. We begin with a general introduction of epilepsy and present basic diagnostic and treatment approaches. We then explore the socioeconomic impact, treatment gaps, and efforts made to mitigate these issues. Taking this step further, we examine recent AI-related developments and their potential as assistive tools in clinical application in LMICs, along with proposals for future directions. We conclude by suggesting the need for scalable, low-cost AI solutions that align with the local infrastructure, policy and community engagement to improve epilepsy care in LMICs. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-88fc7b912faa45c8bd69fcd838553a86 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2076-3425 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Brain Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-88fc7b912faa45c8bd69fcd838553a862025-08-20T01:56:25ZengMDPI AGBrain Sciences2076-34252025-05-0115548110.3390/brainsci15050481Assistive Artificial Intelligence in Epilepsy and Its Impact on Epilepsy Care in Low- and Middle-Income CountriesNabin Koirala0Shishir Raj Adhikari1Mukesh Adhikari2Taruna Yadav3Abdul Rauf Anwar4Dumitru Ciolac5Bibhusan Shrestha6Ishan Adhikari7Bishesh Khanal8Muthuraman Muthuraman9School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USANepal Applied Mathematics and Informatics Institute for Research, Kathmandu 44700, NepalGilling’s School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USASchool of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USAInstitut du Cerveau—Paris Brain Institute, 75013 Paris, FranceDepartment of Neurology, State University of Medicine and Pharmacy “Nicolae Testemitanu”, MD-2004 Chisinau, MoldovaDepartment of Surgery, Kathmandu University Hospital, Dhulikhel 45200, NepalDepartment of Neurology, University of Texas, San Antonio, TX 78249, USANepal Applied Mathematics and Informatics Institute for Research, Kathmandu 44700, NepalNeural Engineering with Signal Analytics and Artificial Intelligence, Department of Neurology, University of Wurzburg, 97070 Wurzburg, GermanyEpilepsy, one of the most common neurological diseases in the world, affects around 50 million people, with a notably disproportionate prevalence in individuals residing in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Alarmingly, over 80% of annual epilepsy-related fatalities occur within LMICs. The burden of the disease assessed using Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) shows that epilepsy accounts for about 13 million DALYs per year, with LMICs bearing most of this burden due to the disproportionately high diagnostic and treatment gaps. Furthermore, LMICs also endure a significant financial burden, with the cost of epilepsy reaching up to 0.5% of the Gross National Product (GNP) in some cases. Difficulties in the appropriate diagnosis and treatment are complicated by the lack of trained medical specialists. Therefore, in these conditions, adopting artificial intelligence (AI)-based solutions may improve epilepsy care in LMICs. In this theoretical and critical review, we focus on epilepsy and its management in LMICs, as well as on the employment of AI technologies to aid epilepsy care in LMICs. We begin with a general introduction of epilepsy and present basic diagnostic and treatment approaches. We then explore the socioeconomic impact, treatment gaps, and efforts made to mitigate these issues. Taking this step further, we examine recent AI-related developments and their potential as assistive tools in clinical application in LMICs, along with proposals for future directions. We conclude by suggesting the need for scalable, low-cost AI solutions that align with the local infrastructure, policy and community engagement to improve epilepsy care in LMICs.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/15/5/481epilepsyepilepsy eiagnosisepilepsy careartificial intelligencelow and middle income countries |
| spellingShingle | Nabin Koirala Shishir Raj Adhikari Mukesh Adhikari Taruna Yadav Abdul Rauf Anwar Dumitru Ciolac Bibhusan Shrestha Ishan Adhikari Bishesh Khanal Muthuraman Muthuraman Assistive Artificial Intelligence in Epilepsy and Its Impact on Epilepsy Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries Brain Sciences epilepsy epilepsy eiagnosis epilepsy care artificial intelligence low and middle income countries |
| title | Assistive Artificial Intelligence in Epilepsy and Its Impact on Epilepsy Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries |
| title_full | Assistive Artificial Intelligence in Epilepsy and Its Impact on Epilepsy Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries |
| title_fullStr | Assistive Artificial Intelligence in Epilepsy and Its Impact on Epilepsy Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assistive Artificial Intelligence in Epilepsy and Its Impact on Epilepsy Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries |
| title_short | Assistive Artificial Intelligence in Epilepsy and Its Impact on Epilepsy Care in Low- and Middle-Income Countries |
| title_sort | assistive artificial intelligence in epilepsy and its impact on epilepsy care in low and middle income countries |
| topic | epilepsy epilepsy eiagnosis epilepsy care artificial intelligence low and middle income countries |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/15/5/481 |
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