Febrile Convulsion

“It all happened so fast, I thought he was choking, it was quite confronting”.

A lot of parents have a lot of anxiety surrounding febrile convulsions so what are they? A febrile convulsion is a rapid alteration in your child’s body temperature and is normally associated with a fever. Although these can be extremely scary to watch they are a natural response and will not cause long term damage. There is no way of preventing a febrile convulsion from occurring. They are the response to a sudden change in temperature. Usually seen in children aged 6 months to 6 years, and often parents have not realised their child is unwell. Your child will look like they are having a seizure this could include involuntry movements or twitching eye movements.

This is where your DRSABCD(yes, our cognitive aid comes in handy again) is important.

You need to:

• Call 000 for help if this is your child’s first episode

or

• This episode is lasting longer than 5 mins.

• You need to remain calm, clear the area and leave the child on a soft surface

• Time the febrile convulsion

Whilst the child is having the convulsion do not restrain the child or put anything in their mouth. It may look like they are having a seizure and afterwards your child will be sleepy or irritable. Do not be alarmed this is normal.

Once the ambulance arrives, they will do a head-to-toe assessment of your child and take you and your child to the nearest paediatric emergency department for further medical assessment.

Remember if this happens to your child, it will be confronting but remember your child will be ok. You have not done anything wrong and there was no way of preventing it from happening.

Download your Fever Fact Sheet Here