Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Also known as Febrile seizures area convulsions of sudden onset due to abnormal electrical activity in the brain that is caused by
fever. Fever is a condition in which body temperature is elevated above normal (generally above 100.4°F [38°C]).
Types BFC
Pathophysiology
Causes
A seizure occurs when the normal electrical patterns of the brain become disrupted.A febrile seizure is caused by fever, most
commonly a high fever that has risen quickly. The average fever temperature in which febrile seizures take place is 104°F (40°C).
Conversely,a healthy person's body temperature fluctuates between 97°F (36.1°C) and 100°F(37.8°C).
Fevers are caused in most cases by viral or bacterial infections, such as otitis media(ear infection), upper respiratory infection,
pharyngitis (throat infection), pneumonia,chickenpox, and urinary tract infection. Other conditions can induce a fever, including allergic
reactions, ingestion of toxins, teething, autoimmune disease, trauma, cancer, excessive sunexposure, or certain drugs.
Clinical Manifestation
Febrile seizures generally last between one and ten minutes. A child experiencing a febrile seizure may exhibit some or all of the following
behaviors:
stiff body
twitching or jerking of the extremities or face
rolled-back eyes
unconsciousness
inability to talk
problems breathing
involuntary urination or defecation
vomiting
confusion, sleepiness, or irritability after the seizure
Risk factors
Diagnostics
In the case of children under 18 months of age, a lumbar puncture (spinal tap) may be recommended to rule out meningitis because
symptoms are often lacking or subtle in children of that age. Because of the benign nature of the simple febrile seizure, tests such as
computed tomography (CT) scans, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), or electroencephalogram (EEG) are not usually recommended
Prognosis
The risk of complications associated with febrile seizures is very low. Some of the complicationsthat may occur are:
biting the tongue
choking on items that were in the mouth at the start of the seizure
injury from falling down
aspirating fluid or vomit into the lungs
developing recurrent febrile seizures
developing recurrent seizures unrelated to fever (epilepsy)
complications related the underlying cause of the fever