Babies and Parents

What makes a child to be prone to recurrent febrile seizures?

Some factors that appear to increase the risk of children suffering from recurrent febrile seizures include: a first febrile seizure at an early age (less than 15 months), frequent fevers and having close relatives with history of febrile seizures.

If the seizure occurs immediately at the beginning of fever or when the temperature is relatively low, the risk of recurrence is higher.

A first episode of febrile seizures is not increased substantially over the risk of recurrent febrile seizures long or short.

Are febrile seizures harmful?

In spite of that can be daunting for parents, the vast majority of febrile seizures are harmless. During a seizure, there is a small chance that the child would suffer damage if dropped or stalls for food or saliva in the mouth.

Providing appropriate first aid for seizures can help avoid these hazards (see the section entitled “What should be done by a child with febrile seizures.”) Read the rest of this entry »