- Lectures / Webinars
- Definitions and terminology of complex febrile seizures - is a subclassification required
Definitions and terminology of complex febrile seizures - is a subclassification required
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ICNC2024
The Tangled Web of Complex Febrile Seizures: A Common But Complex Conundrum
Definitions and terminology of complex febrile seizures - is a subclassification required
Rekha Mittal
While there is now clarity on most aspects of the immediate / long term management and prognosis of simple febrile seizures (SFS), the same is not true for complex febrile seizures (CFS). Characteristics of CFS are one or more of any the following: focal features, duration more than 10 or 15 minutes or recurrence within 24 hours of the febrile illness. However, recent literature suggests that each of these parameters may require different investigation and immediate and long-term management protocols. Confusion also arises from the operational definition of status epilepticus (SE), which is defined as a seizure lasting for more than 5 minutes. There may thus be a case for a FS to be called CFS if the duration is more than 5 minutes, instead of 15 minutes. Febrile SE, defined as seizures with fever lasting 30 minutes or more, may also lie within the spectrum of CFS, as some children who initially present with CFS of the prolonged type, may have febrile SE in subsequent episodes. Pre-existing neurological deficits, which also affect immediate and long-term management of febrile seizures, are not a descriptor for CFS. FS + and GEFS + is another group, where FS either continue beyond 5-6 years of age or are accompanied by afebrile seizures; these seizures may also have simple or complex characteristics. To reconcile these issues, we will suggest that a subclassification is required for CFS for added clarity, which may be helpful for both researchers and clinicians.
Other Lectures in this symposium:
Diagnostic testing (EEG, MRI, CSF studies) in Complex Febrile Seizures: when and why, and are they overdone?
Prognostication and counseling families of children with Complex Febrile seziures
Long term management : is there a right choice – no prophylaxis vs intermittent prophylaxis vs continuous prophylaxis with antiseizure medication