But some patients die after prolonged illness, while their disease was never diagnosed, nor had they started proper treatment. These are mysterious cases. Even medical experts and specialist doctors are at a loss to diagnose the disease and save the patient.
Some people attribute these mysterious diseases to an evil eye or jealousy. They come to this conclusion when people with sound physical and mental health become the victim of an unknown disease.
Sometimes, these patients approach specialist doctors or leading hospitals to get treatment for their illness. But even after a series of medical checkups, doctors would conclude they didn’t suffer from any known disease. Eventually these people would die without receiving treatment.
The case of Kamal Yunus is an example. As a body builder, the young man exercised regularly and enjoyed sound health. All of a sudden, his health deteriorated until he became crippled.
Mustafa Yunus, brother of Kamal, said: “We took him to a number of hospitals and conducted several checkups. None of the specialist doctors found anything wrong with him.”
Kamal now stays at home and doesn’t receive any treatment.
Dr. Khaled Sultan, who works at the emergency section of Al-Hayat Hospital Jeddah, said in some cases these mysterious patients have a mental illness. They should consult a psychiatrist instead of a physician.
“People with a mental illness may think they have physical problems. This might have a negative impact on their nervous system. Sometimes this leads to a partial or complete paralysis,” he said, while noting that in these cases doctors are not in a position to treat them for a physical illness. A large number of people who suffer from such illnesses and their relatives are averse to consulting a psychiatrist. Instead, they approach faith healers who offer alternative medication.
Sultan said that many of these patients believe they are the victims of the evil eye. “On certain occasions, their speculations, whims and fancies further complicate their health conditions,” he said.
In a recent press statement, Dr. Abdul Hameed Al-Habib, director general of the mental and community health care at the Ministry of Health, unveiled the ministry’s undertaking of a national survey about mental patients. It was done in cooperation with a number of academic institutes and agencies, including the Prince Salman Center for Disability Research as well as various universities in the Kingdom and abroad. The survey aims at carrying out comprehensive scientific studies to determine the causes of mental diseases, the number of cases per region and the reasons for variations in numbers.
Al-Habib said the ministry would publish the outcome of the three-year survey and then envisage clear plans and proposals aimed at addressing the problems at grass-roots levels.
