How are febrile seizures diagnosed and treated?

Febrile seizures are common and usually benign. They occur between 3 months and 5 years of age and are associated with fever. The majority of children with febrile seizures have rectal temperatures greater than 102 degrees F. Most febrile seizures occur during the first day of a child's fever. First of all, your child will need to be seen by a pediatrician in order to exclude an infection of the central nervous system (meningitis or encephalitis), which is done by lumbar puncture (LP) and analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which bathes the brain and spinal cord. The main goal of treatment of febrile seizures is to control the fever.

Before diagnosing febrile seizures in infants and children, doctors sometimes perform tests to ensure that seizures are not caused by something other than simply the fever itself. For example, if a doctor suspects the child has meningitis (an infection of the membranes surrounding the brain), a spinal tap may be needed to check for signs of the infection in the cerebrospinal fluid (the fluid that bathes the brain and spinal cord). If there has been severe diarrhea or vomiting, dehydration could be responsible for seizures. Doctors often perform other tests, such as examining the blood and urine, to pinpoint the cause of the child's fever.

A child who has a febrile seizure usually does not need to be hospitalized. If the seizure is prolonged or accompanied by a serious infection, or if the source of the infection cannot be determined, a doctor may recommend that the child be hospitalized for observation.

This answer is based upon source information from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.