Abstracts

Summary: The successful pharmacological, surgical and psychosocial management of patients with epilepsy generally requires sustained access to competent and knowledgeable clinicians and allied health care providers as well as proven therapies that are continually available, affordable and culturally acceptable. Patients affected by the treatment gap lack access to suitably trained care providers or appropriate therapies, or both, and represent the large majority of patients with epilepsy worldwide, often with devastating consequences. This symposium has explored the fundamental reasons for the treatment gap in developed and developing countries and potential solutions in the context of cultural and economic circumstances. Successful efforts in developing countries to improve the treatment of patients with conditions other than epilepsy were presented and should be studied for potential applicability to patients with epilepsy. In addition to the ongoing efforts described in this symposium, further research is urgently needed to identify, develop and implement safe, effective, affordable, culturally acceptable and sustainable pharmacological and nonpharmacological treatments that address the therapy-specific factors underlying the treatment gap.