I have always remembered the words of my paediatrics professor,when a child refuses to eat and play that’s when you know he is seriously unwell.Hence I was totally taken off guard 1 year ago when my then 15mth old toddler,who’d been eating and playing as normal the whole day,jumping and singing to Barney,suddenly collapsed in front of his father’s eyes. He fell to the floor,eyes gazing upwards and was unresponsive. His body felt normal to touch.We rushed to the hospital in the evening rush hour. At the emergency department, a senior doctor diagnosed febrile fits. I was surprised, he hadnt felt feverish at all.His body temperature when they checked was only 37.9. He was admitted, and had 2 further fits.All investigations were normal.Apparently my son has a lower core body temperature than normal.
What is febrile fit?
Febrile fits or convulsions are essentially seizures which occur in young children when there is a rapid rise in body temperature.
It affects 1 in 20 children between the ages of one and four,but can affect children between 6 months and 5 years old.
Who’s at risk
?
Familial- the risk of a child getting febrile fits is higher if one or both parent suffered from it as a child or has a sibling who suffered from it
Th child’s own risk also increases if he has had an episode of convulsions,or suffers from frequent illnesses,including high temperatures.
Symptoms:
Attack begins with child losing consciousness, followed by stiffening of body,leg and arms.
Head is thrown backward and legs and arms begin to jerk.
Skin goes pale and may even turn blue briefly.
Attack ends after a few minutes and shaking stops.Child goes limp and then normal colour and consciousness returns slowly.
Some children regain consciousness faster than others.
What to do?
Turn the child to the recovery position,ie to the side. DO NOT place a stick or finger in the child’s mouth to prevent biting of tongue or lips.
Keep the child in this position after fit subsides. For prolonged fits, seek emergency treatment(call an ambulance).
Hospital admission is required after first febrile convulsion.Subsequent attacks do not always necessitate an admission BUT a doctor should always be consulted to rule out any sinister causes apart from harmless viral illness.
In a child with history of repeated febrile convulsions, the parents may be advised to have rectal diazepam on hand.This suppository inserted into the rectum during a convulsion helps abort the attack in minutes.
The key point to remember is to bring the temperature down:
remove extra clothing,bed clothes,open a window
mild antipyretics(temperature lowering drugs) such as paracetamol,ibuprofen can be used.
It is important to understand that febrile convulsions is NOT epileptic fits.They rarely have anything in common.99% of children who have febrile fits outgrow them by school age.
As frightening as it may appear, febrile convulsions rarely result in permanent injuries.
