As many as one in 30 children suffers these convulsions as a result of fever, Tiny Heart Education wanted to take the time to make sure YOU know what they’re all about.
Tiny Hearts explains that a febrile convulsion is a fit or seizure caused by a sudden change in your child’s body temperature and is usually associated with a fever.
Febrile convulsions can be upsetting to witness, but they are not harmful to your child. Even very long convulsions lasting an hour or more rarely cause harm.
During a febrile convulsion:
▸ your bub will usually lose consciousness
▸ your bubs muscles may stiffen or jerk
▸ your little one may go red or blue in the face
The convulsion may last for several minutes, and when the movements stop, your child will regain consciousness but will probably remain sleepy or irritated afterwards.
There is nothing you can do to make it stop, but there are a few dos and donts when it comes to febrile convulsions.
DO
▸ Stay calm and do not panic
▸ Place your child on a soft surface, lying on their side or back
▸ Try to watch what happens or record the convulsion so you can describe/show it to your doctor later
▸ Try to time how long the convulsion lasts
DON’T
▸ Restrain your child
▸ Put anything in their mouth, including your fingers
▸ Do not put a child who is having a convulsion in the bath to lower their temperature
If your child’s febrile convulsion lasts less than 5 minutes, make an appointment to see your GP as soon as possible to find out the cause of the fever.
If the convulsion was less than 5 minutes long and your child was very unwell before the convulsion, take them to see your GP or visit your nearest hospital emergency department immediately.
Call an ambulance immediately if:
▸ it is your child’s first convulsion
▸ the convulsion lasts more than five minutes
▸ your child does not wake up when the convulsion stops
▸ your child looks very sick when the convulsion stops.
**Warning! Some readers may find this video distressing**
The Epilepsy Association/ Society / Centre in your state possibly has a first aid course which demonstrates the procedure. If you know there is no injury it is best to put them on their side. That way dribble / saliva / vomit can run out of the side of their mouth. It reduces the risk of choking, or the excess fluid going down into the lungs. The Centre in Adelaide definitely runs courses and has a video showing various types of seizures.
That is just heartbreaking to watch, but thank you for showing it as It is good to be educated Incase it ever occurs.
I must say, I would have definitely panicked and not know what to do if that happened prior to this post
I didn’t until my son had one when we was a baby. His temp was 40 degrees and we called an ambulance. He spent the night in hospital. It was so frightening. His eyes were rolling in his head. Thankfully, my hubby was on top of it and knew what to do. I’d never heard of a febrile convulsion before this.
Thanks for sharing. While in theory I knew what to do, I have never seen it to recognize it. Thankfully my kids haven’t had bad fevers yet. Just watching that I felt a little panicked & worried. Hubby has a sister with epilepsy so he would probably handle it better than I
i experience a little one in my care when she was 2 years old,. She had a temperature and I went to get her some meds to bring her temperature down. My husband was cradling her at the time and suddenly her eyes rolled back and she started convulsing, her whole body was shaking. Then she was looking around as if she was not with us. We called for a ambulance straight away. I have never seen or heard of febrile convulsion. It was the most upsetting and scary thing we have both ever witnessed. Now as soon as she gets a temperature we strip all her clothes off and put the air-con on and cold damp cloth on her forehead. Thank goodness she hasn’t had one since.
Oh my goodness, how scary the poor little thing. I also really feel for the parents and it must be so terrifying for them. I am glad my son hasn’t every had one touch wood!
I didn’t watch the video as I have seen an adult seize for hours on end and that was scary enough. A child would be terrifying. I hope my kids never have one.
My son used to suffer with febrile convulsions quite a bit when he was a toddler. Usually his temperature had skyrocketed just before the convulsion. With my son it always turned out to be a throat infection that had triggered the convulsions. It can be a scary time when it happens.
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