Recognizing Seizures in Children

Recognizing Seizures in Children

Our brains are made up of billions of nerve cells called neurons and communicate with each other through tiny electric shocks. Under certain conditions, a group of cells send out electric shocks together and cause abnormal electrical waves in the brain. This condition overwhelms the brain and causes seizures. This can have implications for muscle stiffness, fainting, abnormal behavior, and other symptoms.

Everyone, regardless of age or gender, can experience seizures. The causes of seizures can be fever, lack of oxygen, head trauma, illness, and so on. Febrile seizures or commonly known as step, in children is something parents worry about and fear. This seizure condition appears when the fever is already fairly high with marked convulsions, rolling eyes, and sometimes biting the tongue.

If seen febrile seizures are a frightening condition. However, in general, febrile seizures are not dangerous and will go away on their own as your little one gets older.

Febrile seizures are seizures that occur with an increase in body temperature caused by an extracranial process or occur outside the central nervous system or brain.

Generally, febrile seizures are about 2% to 4% of children aged between 6 months and 6 years. Seizures that occur in children when they have a high fever can last a few seconds or up to 15 minutes which are generally followed by drowsiness.

Causes of Fever Seizures

The cause of febrile seizures is not known with certainty. This condition usually occurs in children when they have a fever with a temperature of 38°C or more without other conditions that can cause seizures, such as brain infections, head injuries, electrolyte disturbances, and epilepsy.

Symptoms of a Fever Seizure

Febrile seizures are different from epilepsy or epilepsy. Epilepsy is characterized by recurrent seizures without fever. Meanwhile, febrile seizures are characterized by the occurrence of seizures during fever.

Children who have febrile seizures can make repetitive jerking movements of the legs and arms, roll their eyes upwards, and even lose consciousness.

Febrile seizures usually last less than 2 minutes. However, in some cases, febrile seizures can last up to 15 minutes.

Febrile seizures might make parents panic, but actually this condition is not dangerous. However, it is still advisable to take your child to the doctor when he first has a febrile seizure.

Although generally harmless, go to the emergency room immediately if a febrile seizure in a child lasts more than 5 minutes, or if a febrile seizure is accompanied by:

• Vomiting
• Looks very sleepy
• Stiff neck
• Shortness of breath

Fever Seizure Prevention

Febrile seizures generally cannot be prevented, including by administering fever-reducing drugs or anti-seizure drugs, like :

• Detect fever early and immediately give paracetamol when the temperature is above 37.5° C
• Provision of anti-seizure drugs taken during the first 48 hours with a doctor's prescription