Ruling on a woman refusing to have intercourse with her husband who suffers from epilepsy

This message, O Shaykh, was sent to us by the questioner, listener (A. S. M.), from Riyadh. It reads: Peace be upon you, and Allah’s mercy and blessings. After that:
A man is suffering from hemiplegia, and a seizure occurs once a month—may Allah protect us and you from this illness. He desires to have intercourse with his wife, but his wife refuses and says: “If I bear children with you, I am like one who has committed adultery.” What is the ruling in the Shari'ah regarding this wife? May Allah guide you.
Answer: It is obligatory for her to allow him to have access to her, because he is her husband, and she must allow him access to her. If she dislikes him because of the epilepsy, she should take her case to the judge, as long as she is in his custody and he is her husband. He has the right to have intercourse with her and be intimate with her, and she has the right to allow him access to her. However, if she disliked him because of the epilepsy and desired separation, this is referred to the court. But if she has accepted him and settled with him, and the epilepsy is with him, it is obligatory for her to allow him access to her so that he may satisfy his desire. If she swore an oath and said: “It is forbidden for me, and I am an adulteress if I allow him access to me,” then she owes the expiation for the oath. If she swore an oath not to allow him access to her, this is considered an oath, and she owes the expiation for the oath: feeding ten poor people, if she swore that. As for if she did not swear an oath, she must allow him access to her, and there is no harm in that for her and no blame; because epilepsy is something that occurs and then goes away. But if she disliked him and wanted to separate from him, this is up to the court, and the court will look into it.