PEDIATRICS Vol. 86 No. 4 October 1990, pp. 611-616
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow P3Rs: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when P3Rs are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Maytal, J.
Right arrow Articles by Shinnar, S.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Maytal, J.
Right arrow Articles by Shinnar, S.

Febrile Status Epilepticus

Joseph Maytal MD1 and Shlomo Shinnar MD, PhD1

1 From the Departments of Neurology and Pediatrics and the Montefiore/Einstein Epilepsy Management Center, Montefiore Medical Center, and Division of Pediatric Neurology, Schneider Children's Hospital, Long Island Jewish Medical Center, The Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York

As part of a study of status epilepticus in children (Maytal J, Shinnar S, Moshe SL, Alvarez LA. Pediatrics. 1989;83:323-331); 44 children with febrile convulsions lasting more than 30 minutes were followed for a mean of 28 months (range 4 to 72). Thirty children were followed prospectively. Children with prior afebrile seizures or evidence of acute central nervous system infection were excluded. Nine (20%) children had prior neurological deficits. The duration of the febrile seizure was 0.5 to 1 hour in 41 cases (85%), 1 to 2 hours in 5 (10%), and greater than 2 hours in 2 children (5%). No child died or developed new neurological deficits following the seizures. The risk of recurrent seizures was increased, but only in the group with prior neurological abnormality. Six (66%) of these children had subsequent febrile seizures compared with 12 (34%) of the normal children (P = .08). Three (33%) had recurrent febrile status epilepticus compared with only 1 (3%) normal child (P = .023). The 2 children in the prospective arm of the study with recurrent febrile status epilepticus were both neurologically abnormal (P = .035). All 3 of the children who subsequently had afebrile seizures (2 prospective) were neurologically abnormal (P = .006 overall, P = .035 for prospective only). It is concluded that the occurrence of febrile status epilepticus in a neurologically impaired child is a risk factor for subsequent febrile as well as afebrile seizures. The occurrence of febrile status epilepticus in an otherwise normal child does not significantly increase the risk for subsequent febrile (brief or prolonged) or afebrile seizures in the first few years following the episode.

Key Words: seizure • febrile seizures • status epilepticus • epilepsy

Submitted on November 27, 1989
Accepted on March 30, 1990




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 J Child NeurolHome page
J. C. D. Brevoord, K. F. M. Joosten, W. F. M. Arts, R. W. van Rooij, and M. de Hoog
Status Epilepticus: Clinical Analysis of a Treatment Protocol Based on Midazolam and Phenytoin
J Child Neurol, June 1, 2005; 20(6): 476 - 481.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 J Child NeurolHome page
J. C. D. Brevoord, K. F. M. Joosten, W. F. M. Arts, R. W. van Rooij, and M. de Hoog
Status Epilepticus: Clinical Analysis of a Treatment Protocol Based on Midazolam and Phenytoin
J Child Neurol, June 1, 2005; 20(6): 476 - 481.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 Arch. Dis. Child.Home page
C Waruiru and R Appleton
Febrile seizures: an update
Arch. Dis. Child., August 1, 2004; 89(8): 751 - 756.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 BrainHome page
R. Grunewald
Childhood seizures and their consequences for the hippocampus
Brain, September 1, 2002; 125(9): 1935 - 1936.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J Child NeurolHome page
W. G. Mitchell
Status Epilepticus and Acute Serial Seizures in Children
J Child Neurol, January 1, 2002; 17(1_suppl): S36 - S43.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 J Child NeurolHome page
S. Shinnar and T. A. Glauser
Febrile Seizures
J Child Neurol, January 1, 2002; 17(1_suppl): S44 - S52.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 Arch. Dis. Child.Home page
C. M Verity
Do seizures damage the brain? The epidemiological evidence
Arch. Dis. Child., January 1, 1998; 78(1): 78 - 84.
[Full Text]

Home page
 NEJMHome page
A. T. Berg, S. Leiner, A. T. Berg, T. Shetty, P. Camfield, C. Camfield, N. P. Rosman, T. Colton, and J. Labazzo
Diazepam to Prevent Febrile Seizures
N. Engl. J. Med., December 30, 1993; 329(27): 2033 - 2035.
[Full Text]

Home page
 JWatch GeneralHome page
FEBRILE STATUS EPILEPTICUS HAS A GOOD PROGNOSIS
Journal Watch (General), October 19, 1990; 1990(1019): 3 - 3.
[Full Text]