Febrile seizure in baby and toddler: How to act correctly
In about three to five percent of children between six months and five years, it comes with high fever to a so-called febrile spasm. Find out here what the symptoms are and how you should react if your child suddenly suffers a febrile seizure.
What is a febrile seizure?
A febrile seizure is a seizure in infancy and childhood. It occurs in two to four percent of toddlers between the ages of three months and five years and usually passes by itself. Nevertheless, it is usually quite a shock for parents to see their child like this. It is triggered by a rapid and sudden rise in temperature to over 39 °C.
Causes of a febrile seizure
In most cases, bacterial or viral infections are triggers for a febrile seizure. But there are also some children who are hereditary and therefore prone to febrile seizures.
Symptoms of a febrile seizure
With a febrile seizure, the child loses consciousness for some time, he rolls his eyes, presses his teeth together, his limbs stiffen, and finally begin to twitch. The child may be shaken by convulsions. But sometimes it also happens that the child is completely apathetic. It then lies limply without cramps and is not responsive. As a rule, a febrile seizure lasts only a few minutes. The child is often very tired afterwards and usually cannot remember the fever attack itself.
What to do in case of a febrile seizure?
Febrile seizures are harmless from a medical point of view and normally remain without health consequences. Also, a pre-existing disease of the brain can usually be excluded as a reason for the spasm. If your child has a febrile seizure, you should stay calm and keep the following points in mind:
- Loosen your child’s clothes and store them as upright as possible so that they get enough air.
- If your child vomits, bring him into the stable lateral position. You prevent vomit or increased saliva from entering the lungs. Breathing is not affected in this way.
- Make sure that the child does not hurt himself! Upholstery corners and edges with blankets and pillows.
- Cold wraps usually have no effect on a febrile seizure. Just stay with your child and wait until the seizure is over.
- Also, you should not shake your child!
- Do not give your child anything to eat or drink during a febrile seizure under any circumstances. The risk of suffocation is too great.
- If the cramp does not end on its own after two to three minutes, play it safe and call the emergency services.
- After the cramp, measure your child’s body temperature. Find out here how to correctly measure your child’s fever. Then apply antipyretics if necessary.
- After a febrile seizure, you should have your child examined by a pediatrician. Usually they prescribe your child a so-called emergency suppository, which you then have ready for the rapid treatment of new cramps. The suppository interrupts the febrile seizure after a short time. Find out here when you should definitely consult a doctor if you still have a fever.
How often can febrile seizures occur?
Despite the frightening symptoms, you don’t need to worry about your child. Febrile seizures usually disappear after one to three minutes. Also, the worry of not noticing a febrile seizure at night is unfounded, as these usually occur in the afternoon or early evening hours. In addition, it often occurs only once in a lifetime, so further cramps are unlikely. The risk of developingepilepsyafter simple febrile seizures is also low. Only in children with a previously unrecognized neurological disorder, such as epilepsy, febrile seizures can be the first signs of the disease.