Black History Month: Epilepsy in the African American Community

According to the Epilepsy Foundation, 12 percent or more than 350,000 of the over 3 million Americans with epilepsy are African-American. African-Americans are also more likely to be diagnosed with epilepsy than Caucasians; they more often experience status epilepticus; and they are at an increased risk for Sudden Unexpected Death from Epilepsy (SUDEP).

Web resource just for you
In response to these dramatic statistics, the Epilepsy Foundation has created a new site called Epilepsy and the African American community. The site features real personal stories, resources and is packed with information on epilepsy.

Hear from Jason Snelling
Jason Snelling, FB for the Atlanta Falcons, has recently done a public service announcement for the epilepsy foundation. You can check it out below:

Read more
For more information you can also read the award winning article by Aliyah Baruchin on epilepsy in the African American community. The piece was published in EpilepsyUSA the Epilepsy Foundation’s flagship publication.

Tell us your story
Feel free to comment below on your own experience.

Jessica K. Smith Founder and CEO; Executive Director

Jessica Keenan Smith is a patient advocate and epilepsy community leader with more than 15 years of experience. As Founder and CEO of Living Well With Epilepsy and Executive Director of ASENT she bridges the gap between the scientific and patient communities, with a particular focus on the needs of the epilepsies. Jessica Keenan Smith is Founder and CEO of Living Well With Epilepsy, an award winning online resource for people affected by epilepsy to share stories and access in-depth information on the disease. Since 2009, Living Well With Epilepsy (https://livingwellwithepilepsy.com) has been featured in Forbes, Wired, NBC, NPR and the cover story of Epilepsy Advocate Magazine and has partnered with companies such as UCB, Lundbeck, Sunovion, Eisai, and more. Ms. Smith is also the Executive Director of the American Society for Experimental Neurotherapeutics (ASENT) (https://asent.org), an organization that brings together leaders from industry, academia, government and advocacy who are engaged in bringing drugs and devices to market across all neurologic disease states. In this role she is responsible for leading a successful scientific journal and annual scientific conference with speakers from all over the world.

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