Managing Febrile Seizures

By Darlene Oakley HERWriter

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For the first-time mother to witness her baby have a febrile seizure is terrifying. For the "experienced" mother, it's no less terrifying. More than likely there has been an illness that has led to this happening that has already left you exhausted and wondering what it wrong with your baby. But, no mother really anticipates this happening to their baby. Many mothers don't even realize it's a possibility until it happens to them.

A febrile seizure is a seizure in a child between 6 months and 5 years. It is usually associated, as the name suggests, with a fever. The intensity of the seizure varies according to each child. No one can really predict what will trigger a febrile seizure in one baby and not in the other, and no one can predict how one baby will react to it.

Fevers can happen for many reasons: infection, virus, flu, cold, teething, reaction to a vaccine. But, if a baby for any reason comes down with more than just a mild fever ("burning up") there is reason for concern. The immediate issue is to get that fever down! There are several ways to do this.

1) Analgesics/pain relievers: Tylenol/Tempra (acetaminophen), Advil/Motrin (Ibuprofen) and ASA (aspirin).

Depending on your baby, these may or may not work effectively. What we do now know, that we didn't when many of us mothers were growing up, is that you can double up Tylenol and Advil. If you give your baby Tylenol (acetaminophen) and after about an hour there doesn't seem much of a difference, administer the appropriate dose of Advil (ibuprofen). When the dose of Tylenol wears off (usually four hours), give them some more. When the dose of Advil wear off (usually six hours), give them some more. Keep rotating to help keep the fever down. This will also allow your baby/child to sleep and hopefully fight off whatever they've come down with.

It is important to monitor potential allergic reactions to any of these drugs (changes in heart rate or breathing, hives or other rashes). If you suspect that your baby is having a reaction to the medication, stop using it. If you're concerned about anything, don't be afraid to call a health help line, doctor, or head to the emergency room if the reaction is severe enough.

It is also important to be aware that ibuprofen can upset a stomach. So if your child has been vomiting, ibuprofen is not recommended.

Make sure you administer the medicine according to your child's weight, not their age. The efficacy of medication is determined by your child's body mass.

If after three days you're still administering any kind of analgesic to manage the fever, your child should be examined by a doctor.

Of course, if your child has had any allergic reactions to any of these medications prior to this, make sure you have discussed with your doctor which medications are safe for your child.

2) Cool compresses and clothing: Keep your child cool. Don't bundle them up or wrap them in blankets. Infants especially cannot regulate their body temperature. If they're hot they won't know that they can kick off a blanket to cool down. Dress your child in summer-type clothes or diaper shirt. The easiest thing to help keep track of your child's temperature, whether sleeping or awake, is socks or slippers. If your baby seems too warm, remove the socks or slippers. If your baby seems cold to the touch, put the socks on.

Cold compresses can be just a facecloth rinsed under cool water and placed on the chest, the back of the neck, on the back or on the forehead like our mothers used to do. You will not want to leave a child with a cold facecloth on their chest for a long period of time, just long enough to cool them down.

3) Tepid bath - Bathe your child in a tepid or lukewarm bath. You don't want it to be cold or too warm. Think of a hot summer day and the kind of shower you take. You don't have a steaming hot bath. You want something refreshing that will cool you down. That's what your child needs to help cool down. When you wash them with a facecloth, they should feel refreshed, although they will probably be screaming in your face while you do this. But it is a highly effective, non-medicinal way of addressing a fever and is perfectly safe to combine with any medicating you're already doing.

Even if you've done all these things, your child may experience a seizure due to fever. Some children might have one when the fever breaks. Others might have one if their body temperature spikes too quickly. This can happen even with the administration of analgesics.

Signs of febrile seizure include, but are not limited to:

1) eyes roll back in their head or stare straight ahead without really seeing, wide pupils.

2) the body goes rigid (unable to bend arms and legs).

3) shaking of the body (mild/moderate/severe).

4) short gasps of air.

Some things you can do:

1) Call an ambulance or get the baby to a hospital.

2) While waiting for the ambulance, cool the child down right away with a cool sponge bath. Do not leave the child unattended in the water. The child has no control over his/her body.

2) While holding the child, turn him/her upside down or on their side so they don't choke on any vomit or saliva.

3) If their lips start turning blue (can happen if a seizure lasts longer than a minute), breathe small puffs of air into their mouth AND nose. Basic baby CPR will keep oxygen flowing to their brain, heart and other organs. Place your mouth over their mouth and nose and puff once and repeat as necessary. Babies'/children's lungs are small and will not take a full blow of air that is normally administered through CPR on adults. Small puffs.

Hopefully this will never happen to you. But, many parents are astonished to find out how common febrile seizures are. These ideas are meant as guidelines only and suggestions to help you manage a medical situation with your child, and often things will calm down in a few days with nothing out of the ordinary. But armed with these ideas, hopefully, a mother will never be left wondering what to do.

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We value and respect our HERWriters' experiences, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice, although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.