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Treating epilepsy in forcibly displaced persons: timely, necessary, affordable

The burden of epilepsy among forcibly displaced persons is thought to be high, and access to treatment is limited. In June 2021, the WHO Secretariat published a draft intersectoral action plan aimed at redressing the global epilepsy treatment gap, providing a valuable opportunity to improve epilepsy treatment for forcibly displaced persons.

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Fig. 1: Overview of neurological disease visits reported by the UNHCR.

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Correspondence to Farrah J. Mateen.

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F.J.M. declares funding support from the Fondation Pierre Fabre for the Guinea Epilepsy Project. The foundation had no role in the writing of the article. F.J.M. has previously worked with the Global Polio Eradication Initiative and the WHO, and was an intern with a country office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. She has received funding, unrelated to this work, from the NIH, IQVIA, Sumaira Foundation, and the National MS Society.

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Mateen, F.J. Treating epilepsy in forcibly displaced persons: timely, necessary, affordable. Nat Rev Neurol 17, 593–594 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41582-021-00548-y

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