A situation of febrile convulsion was what my child experienced the other day, but I found out there are other cases of convulsion different from that and that's what I have been reading about, as I do not desire a repeat of what happened the last time.
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What causes seizures?
A seizure happens due to an unusual burst of electrical activity happening between the neurons or the brain cells in the brain. There are different reasons why a seizure could happen, infection, underlying health conditions, and brain injury. It has been published that a baby's risk of seizure is more common when the child is below 18 months.
The symptoms of a seizure depend greatly on the type of seizure it is.
- Subtle seizures are the most common type of newborn seizure which may have the resemblance of a usual and everyday movement and may be difficult to even notice.
A sign of subtle seizures include; leg cycling, long pauses between breaths, rolling of the eye, blinking, or staring, protruding tongue, and uncontrollable movement of the eye.
Clonic seizure happens with a child jerking or twitching, a baby with this type of seizure may show uncontrolled jerking, and muscle movements, done repeatedly.
Tonic seizures are characterized by complete stiffness, a baby who experiences complete stiffness would keep their head to one side, keep their eyes to one side, or bend and hold their arms and legs in an awkward position.
Tonic-clonic seizure is a combination of the two, it begins with stiffness followed by jerking. So, in this case, a tonic experience is first seen followed by a chronic one.
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- Infantile spasms also known as epileptic spasms, are usually diagnosed within a baby's first year of life. Usually begins with a head jerk which is followed by a cluster of spams where the arm and leg rise or suddenly straighten.
The seizures may be subtle at first before they become more noticeable over time. It needs to be treated on time because there is a high risk of developmental delays if not treated on time.
*Status epilepticus is a serious medical emergency that has an episode lasting for longer than 30 minutes. This episode of epilepsy can lead to permanent brain damage.
As mentioned briefly earlier, there are different reasons why a child may experience seizures and I am going to talk about a few in a more detailed manner.
When there is a bacterial and viral infection, a seizure can happen. Viral encephalitis creates a situation of brain inflammation and seizure. A common virus is flu, causing a baby's temperature to rise and increasing the chances of febrile seizure.
Bacterial infection can also cause meningitis in babies, causing a presentation of seizures.
A fever or high body temperature may cause febrile seizures. If a baby has hydrocephalus, then CSF which means cerebrospinal fluid would apply pressure on the brain.
This condition is common and can happen on its own even while the child is in the womb, the use of vacuum extractors to help deliver a baby can also cause injury to the head and cause the accumulation of CSF in the brain.
During a seizure, the child mustn't be left alone to avoid injury. In the same way, seizure can cause physical complications, it can also come with isolation and embarrassment.
A case of seizure should be reported to the hospital, and several questions will be asked by the neurologist for a proper diagnosis to be made.
For Further Studies
https://www.childrenshospital.org/conditions/seizures
https://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/health/s/seizures
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/baby-seizure
Hi, I am Tobi, a writer, speaker, relationship blogger, and lover of good music. I love making friends and learning from people.
