Since 2015, the Paraguayan health system has carried out encephalography studies through telemedicine and free of charge, which has managed to expand the service nationwide.
In 2015, Paraguay became one of the few Latin American countries that has an encephalography sample system that allowed it to carry out a national mapping of epilepsy. Through a telemedicine network installed in various health centers in Paraguay, it was possible to carry out this mapping.
Through encephalographies it is possible to diagnose or check certain neurological pathologies. In this way, from 2015 to 2020, more than 12 thousand studies were carried out. The demand was growing every year as explained by Dr. Carlos Arbo, specialist in neurology and neurophysiology, and Pedro Galván, director of Telemedicine.
Encephalography is a study of the central nervous system, through electrodes placed on the head. It is a non-invasive study, and does not require the patient to take any medication. “It is the measurement of the spontaneous electrical activity of the cerebral cortex and that gives information about its functioning at the time of the study”, explained Dr. Arbo.
The national epilepsy mapping strategy allowed the Paraguayan authorities to have a medical infrastructure to continue telemedicine services in later years. This also contributed to the training of new health professionals and technicians for the correct use of this type of equipment that involves electrodes and specific devices.
“A signal that goes wrong is not synonymous with a pathology, it is because it may be due to a poorly placed device, malpractice at the time of placement or because the patient was not sufficiently well treated or prepared, or being in a hostile or noisy environment. , it has to be the right one. A capacity is being installed in the country”, explained Galván.
The role of medicine
Thanks to telemedicine, encephalography could be implemented in more cities with large populations, in addition to the capital, Asunción. Telemedicine allowed residents of departments such as Central, Paraguarí, Misiones, Itapúa, Ñeembucú, Amambay, Alto Paraná, Guairá, and Caaguazú to receive this type of service.
“We have been growing exponentially, there is a very good reception of encephalography via telemedicine in the country, and that it provides an adequate response to the needs of what colleagues requested for patients. We have been here since 2015, we started with 9 teams distributed in health centers and head hospitals throughout the country, we started working,” explained Arbo.
