The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to evaluate the prevalence of epilepsy in a population based sample: the Bakairi indians, who live on the banks of Paranatinga river in the central plateau of Mato Grosso state, Brazil. This population is composed of 483 inhabitants. The study was outlined in two stages, and the investigation was door-to-door in a total of 103 houses. The results of the instrument showed a sensitivity of 88% (CI- 95%, 84.9-93), specificity of 97.8% (CI-95, 95-98). The prevalence of active epilepsy was 12.4‰, and inactive was 6.2‰. This prevalence of the epilepsy was considered high probably due to some familial risk factor (p=0.04) among those Indians, while other factors were not important.
epilepsy; prevalence; risk factor; Bakairi indian
