About Us

The ILAE - Latin America region includes the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries in South and Middle America and Mexico. The goal of the ILAE-Latin America is to serve as a regional resource for current and emerging knowledge on epilepsy prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and research according to the strategic plan of the ILAE. A yearly Latin-American Epilepsy Congress is organized in different countries of the region.

The following task forces and programs are currently active in the region:

Task Force on Research

The aim of the task force is to stimulate research in epilepsy in the region. The most important ongoing regional studies are genetics in epileptic encephalopathies in Latin America and a two-year trial in Argentina on the use of cannabis in epileptic encephalopathies, which will be a model for the use of cannabis in other countries in Latin America.

Task Force on Primary Care

This task force is working on the development and improvement of epilepsy in primary care with programs and courses addressed to physicians and nurses, closely integrated with specialist epilepsy services.

Task Force on National Programs/Pilot Programs

In different countries in Latin America epilepsy legislation and programs are already in place and in others programs and laws are currently being developed. This task force is in charge of the organization of national programs with pilot programs for countries without epilepsy legislation. The countries for new projects are chosen with the aim of covering different geographical areas.

Program of Telemedicine

A program of telemedicine is being developed as is useful to resolve difficult patients, and important for educational and academic purposes especially for large and resource-limited countries.
LASSE (Latin-American Summer School of Epilepsy)

The LASSE is a pioneering education program in the region that, under the supervision of the ILAE, is addressed to young health professionals from throughout Latin America in order to deepen and update their knowledge on the epilepsies. The LASSE is a yearly meeting organized in Brazil since 2007.

ALADE (Academia Latinoamericana de Epilepsia) Task Force

The ALADE organizes itinerant and pre-convention courses throughout Latin America. It provides training opportunities for medical professionals in epilepsy and educational materials in the form of books and brochures.

Regional fellowships

Currently, in LA there are three 1-year fellowships for training at tertiary epilepsy centers. Candidates are selected from countries with the highest need for specialized epileptologists and they are required to return to their countries of origin with the new knowledge.