Most of the time when children have
a seizure, or a convulsion, it's caused by a fever.
These are called "fever seizures" or "febrile
seizures." They are very frightening, but they
aren't as dangerous as they may appear.
How serious are febrile seizures?
Generally, febrile seizures aren't
harmful to a child. Even though seeing your child
have a febrile seizure is frightening, your child
will be okay. A febrile seizure doesn't cause brain
damage. Also, your child can't swallow his or her
tongue during a seizure. Febrile seizures usually
last just a few minutes and go away on their own.
It's very unusual for a febrile seizure to last more
than 10 minutes. Usually, a child who has had a febrile
seizure does not need to be hospitalized and may not
need x-rays or a brain wave test. Your child may only
need to be seen by your family doctor so the cause
of the fever can be found.
What should I do if my child
has a seizure?
Put your child on his or her side so
that he or she won't choke on saliva.
Don't put anything in his or her mouth. Don't restrain
your child's movements during the seizure. The most
important (and hardest) thing for you to do is to
remain as calm as possible. Most seizures stop on
their own within a few minutes, so keep your eyes
on a clock or watch. Call 911 if the seizure lasts
more than 10 minutes.
What should I do after the
seizure has stopped?
Call your doctor. He or she may want
to see your child to find a cause for the fever.
Will my child have more seizures?
The chance of your child having another
seizure is 25% to 30%. Most children won't have another
seizure. The risk of another febrile seizure is slightly
higher if your child is younger than 18 months, if
there's a family history of febrile seizures, or if
the fever wasn't very high when the seizure occurred.
Can these seizures be prevented
with medicine?
Maybe, but many doctors and parents
believe the side effects from the medicine are worse
than the child having another febrile seizure. Even
if medicine is used, it may not prevent another seizure.
If my child has a febrile
seizure, does this mean that he or she has epilepsy?
No. A single seizure is never epilepsy.
Even repeated febrile seizures aren't considered epilepsy,
because children outgrow the risk of having a seizure
caused by fever. A child with epilepsy has two or
more seizures that aren't caused by fever.
Febrile seizures don't cause epilepsy.
But the chance of epilepsy developing in a child who
has had a febrile seizure is slightly higher than
if he or she didn't have a febrile seizure. The chance
of epilepsy developing in a child who has had a febrile
seizure is about 2% to 4%. There is a better than
95% chance that your child will not have epilepsy,
and there is no evidence that treating your child
with medicine will prevent epilepsy.
