What Pain Relief Can I Have During Labour
There are different options for pain relief during labour. Here are some important things to consider:
- Epidurals can be given to women with epilepsy
- High doses of the pain relief drug pethidine can trigger seizures
- Diamorphine can be used instead of pethidine
- TENS machines are often used as pain relief during labour and are reported to be suitable for women with epilepsy
- Gas and air can be given to women with epilepsy
What Are Neonatal Seizures
Neonatal seizures are epileptic events that happen during the first hours of life, to 1-2 days of life, to the first week of life. They occur when abnormal electrical discharges in the brain produce conditions such as brain disturbances, convulsions, or impaired consciousness. Early seizures must be quickly addressed and treated, as they are not only a sign of significant brain injury, but they can also cause additional brain damage if left unmanaged
What Could Cause A Baby To Have A Seizure
A: Brain damage from disease or injury, such as hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy , is the most prevalent cause of seizures in newborn newborns .
B: Certain medications can also trigger a seizure. The most common drugs associated with infantile spasms are topiramate and valproic acid. Lithium treatment for bipolar disorder has been reported to increase the risk of seizures in children, but this effect is not seen until after several months of use. Carbamazepine may cause behavioral problems in children who take it long term. Epidemic proportions of epilepsy occur when there is an underlying neurological condition such as brain tumor or stroke. In these cases, the seizures are a result of the condition causing brain damage which can lead to increased susceptibility to seizures. About 10% of infants born very prematurely will have evidence of brain damage at birth that could put them at risk for developing epilepsy. Very low birth weight babies are at increased risk for seizures due to complications during pregnancy or labor, trauma to the brain during delivery, lack of oxygen at birth, and/or infection following birth.
C: A small percentage of infants will have a genetic predisposition to develop seizures. These children are born with abnormal genes that cause their brains to be more susceptible to seizures.
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What Should I Do If My Child Has A Seizure
If your child has a seizure, you should stay calm and:
- gently protect their body and head
- if theyre in water, keep their face out of the water and call for an ambulance
- time the seizure
- dont put anything in their mouth
- after any convulsion ends, roll them on their side
- lay them on their side if there is fluid in their mouth
- make sure they are breathing normally afterwards
You should call an ambulance if:
- your childs seizure lasts more than 5 minutes, or they have more than one seizure
- they are still unconscious or have trouble breathing after the seizure
- quicky have another seizure, or they have multiple seizures
- they had a seizure with food or liquid in their mouth
- theyre unconscious or not breathing normally
- its their first seizure
- the seizure happened in the bath or a pool
- theyre unconscious for more than 5 minutes afterwards, or not breathing normally
- your child also has an injury
- your child has diabetes
- you are going to give them medication to stop the seizure
- youre unsure whether they need help
How Does A Doctor Diagnose Infant Seizures
If you think your infant experienced a seizure, your doctor may use the following set of tests to diagnose seizure activity:
- EEG is a test that determines abnormalities in the electrical activity, or brain waves, of a brain. This test is the primary way to diagnose epilepsy and seizures.
- MRI is a test that uses a combination of magnets and radio waves to diagnose diseases or injuries especially in soft tissue.
- CT Scan combines x-rays to create images of the body. CT scan is used to identify any brain abnormalities that may be causing seizures, such as brain tumours.
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What Are The Signs And Symptoms Of Infantile Spasms
During an infantile spasm, your babys body will stiffen or tense up suddenly and only for a couple of seconds. They may also arch their back, and their arms, legs and/or head may bend forward. Infantile spasms often happen one after another in a cluster with five- to 10-second pauses in between spasms.
After a spasm or series of spasms, your baby may appear upset or cry but not always.
In some cases, infantile spasms are very subtle and difficult to notice. Subtle signs of an infantile spasm include:
- Eyes rolling up.
Spasms that are due to an abnormality in your babys brain often affect one side of their body more than the other or may result in pulling of their head or eyes to one side.
Infantile spasms are most common just after your baby wakes up and rarely happen while theyre sleeping.
Soon after your baby starts experiencing spasms, youll likely notice other changes in your baby, including:
- Loss of developmental milestones they had previously reached, such as rolling over, sitting, crawling and babbling.
- Loss of social interactions and smiling less.
- Increased fussiness or silence.
If you can, try to take videos of your childs spasms so you can show them to their pediatrician. Its very important that infantile spasms are diagnosed early. If you think your baby may be having infantile spasms, talk to their pediatrician as soon as possible.
Why Is My Newborn Puppy Having Seizures
Seizures may be a sign of hypoglycemia in newborn puppies. This is because substantial changes in blood sugar can affect the excitability of nerve cells in the body. As well as this, your puppys brain needs glucose to function properly, but it cannot store it efficiently yet. Thus, a sudden lowering of a puppys blood sugar can cause seizures regardless of whether or not they have epilepsy, and the brain is easily affected. These seizures may involve the entire body and can include a loss of consciousness. Other clinical signs of hypoglycemia in puppies include muscle tremors, weakness, altered mentation, and lack of appetite.
With that being said, not all seizures in newborn puppies are caused by hypoglycemia. Other possibilities include neonatal encephalopathy, liver shunts, and hydrocephalus. Infections whilst in the uterus or after birth can lead to brain damage, thus causing seizures and coordination difficulties.
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Can You Predict When Someone Else Is About To Have A Seizure
If youre with someone who indicates they are about to have a seizure, or has signs of an oncoming seizure that you recognize, you can help keep them safe. Maybe the other person begins to shake or breathe differently, or they become suddenly confused. If youre close to someone who has seizures, chances are you will become familiar with their warning signs. Take the following steps if you have a warning that a seizure is about to begin:
- Help ease the person to the ground if they are standing.
- Clear the area of any objects on which they could become injured.
- Loosen clothing, especially around the neck.
- Stay with the person for the duration of the seizure.
Deterrence And Patient Education
First and foremost, if the patient has a seizure that lasts longer than 5 minutes, or if he or she has repeated seizures over a few minutes, emergency services must be contacted. The patient may be prescribed an emergency antiepileptic medication thus, the parents may be counseled on its use.
Parents should also be counseled on the prognosis of neonatal seizures, particularly the possibility of neurologic impairments in patients who survive and the importance of referral to early rehabilitation services. In patients who develop long-term epilepsy, the parents should have higher vigilance in situations where if seizure activity should occur, the dangers can be compounded .
A child with seizures should have routine clinical follow up with pediatric neurology, and the parents should be advised of the importance of medication adherence.
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Life Expectancy Of People With Epilepsy
In 2013, researchers from the University of Oxford and University College London, both in the United Kingdom, reported that people with epilepsy are 11 times more likely to experience premature death than people without it..
The risk appears to be greater if the person also has a mental health condition. Suicide, accidents, and assaults accounted for 15.8% of early deaths. Most people affected by these had also received a diagnosis of a mental health condition.
Lead researcher Seena Fazel says, Our results have significant public health implications, as around 70 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and they emphasize that carefully assessing and treating psychiatric disorders as part of standard checks in with epilepsy could help reduce the risk of premature death in these patients.
Our study, he adds, also highlights the importance of suicide and nonvehicle accidents as major preventable causes of death in people with epilepsy.
Several factors may have links to an increased risk of epilepsy. According to a 2017 research review in the journal NeuroToxicology, these factors include:
- age, with new cases occurring more frequently in young children and older adults
- brain injuries and tumors
- central nervous system infections, such as bacterial meningitis, viral encephalitis, and neurocysticercosis
Some risk factors, such as alcohol consumption, are modifiable when trying to prevent the development of epilepsy.
This can have long-term benefits. In one
The Right Diagnosis Right Away
Rani Singh, MD, a pediatric neurologist with Atrium Health Levine Childrens, was part of Kates care team at LCH. Katie credits Dr. Singh, who serves as Kates pediatric neurologist to this day, with saving her daughters life.
You need to get these seizures under control as soon as you can because theres a serious risk of developmental regression and problems long term, Dr. Singh says.
While infantile spasms are very rare only about three to five kids out of 10,000 have them doctors at Levine Childrens see at least one child with this condition every month. The LCH teams experience was essential to give Kate the best possible outcome.
People often think of seizures as someone falling and shaking intensely, but there are many types of seizures that cause a range of symptoms that can differ from person to person. Infantile spasms are often very subtle and may initially be misdiagnosed as colic, reflux or the startle reflex.
In fact, one study found that nearly half of babies who suffer from infantile spasms arent accurately diagnosed for more than a month, which can increase the risk of intellectual disability, autism, lifelong epilepsy and even death. For a child showing signs of infantile spasms, fast, expert care is critical.
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Seizures In Babies: What Do They Mean
Seizures in the neonatal period are not uncommon, particularly with premature infants. Neonatal period refers to the first 28 days of life for a baby. Seizures happen when there are abnormal electrical discharges in the newborns central nervous system. These discharges can be caused by a variety of different conditions. Some of these conditions may be relatively benign or temporary, but some seizures can be related to serious medical conditions and require urgent investigation and attention.
Enhancing Healthcare Team Outcomes
The diagnosis and management of neonatal seizures require an interprofessional approach to avoid the complications from the underrecognition of clinical seizures and the adverse effects of the medications administered.
Referral to critical care services should be performed early to place the patient under the care of neurocritical care experts and to ensure that the patient is stabilized from an oxygenation and hemodynamic standpoint.
Pediatric neurology should be consulted to evaluate the patient and confirm the diagnosis of neonatal seizures.
Electroencephalography technicians need to be readily available to initiate monitoring as well as screen for electrographic seizure activity that may be subclinical.
The medications utilized to control seizures need to be ordered, obtained, and administered in a timely manner. Pharmacists with pediatric expertise should be available to safely provide these medications as well as assist providers in understanding specific pharmacological characteristics in relation to the unique renal and hepatic physiology of the pre-term or term neonate.
Finally, the bedside nurses are vital to helping providers to identify clinically evident seizure activity, annotate pertinent events, and help ensure the patient is safe from the adverse effects some antiepileptic agents have.
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What Does An Infant Seizure Look Like Compare Baby
Another sign is when somebody parts, symptoms, Testing is essential to confirm the diagnosis of a seizure disorder.If your child has a seizure, These seizures are the most common type of infant seizures and are usually caused by a fever above 102 degrees, and their eyes may roll, A seizure usually affects how a person looks or acts for a short time, there are a few things you can do to help doctorsWhat are the Signs of Infant Seizures?Signs and Symptoms of Infant Seizures, Often several spasms occur over a few minutes, neck or upper arms start jerking in clusters severally it means that the infant is having a seizure known as myoclonic seizures, this seizure is a common type that attacks infants, It is one of the most common disorders of the nervous system.
Common Questions About First Aid For A Child Who Is Having A Febrile Seizure
Is there any way to prevent a febrile seizure?
If they have a fever, you need to reduce their temperature. This will reduce their chance of having a febrile seizure.
How can I lower the baby or child’s temperature?
To reduce their temperature, remove their outer layers of clothing and any blankets. Giving them fluids such as water and juice will also help cool them, as will giving the recommended amount of paracetamol or ibuprofen syrup. Keep them in a cool environment, by opening windows and turning down central heating.
How do I take clothes off a baby or child having a seizure?
A child having a febrile seizure may be very stiff or moving a lot. Try to remove the clothes from one limb at a time.
Remain calm and gently remove the clothes without restraining them.
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What Causes Seizures In Infants And Children
A high fever can sometimes cause seizures in young children. These are also called febrile convulsions.
Children can also have a seizure because of:
- a lack of oxygen to the brain
Certain triggers, such as flashing lights, can also lead to seizures in some children.
Most children wont have another seizure. But children who have repeated and unpredictable seizures might have epilepsy.
Complications Of Febrile Seizures
Febrile seizures have been linked to an increased risk of epilepsy.
Many parents worry that if their child has one or more febrile seizures, they’ll develop epilepsy when they get older. Epilepsy is a condition where a person has repeated seizures without a fever.
While it’s true that children who have a history of febrile seizures have an increased risk of developing epilepsy, it should be stressed that the risk is still small.
It’s estimated that children with a history of simple febrile seizures have a 1 in 50 chance of developing epilepsy in later life.
Children with a history of complex febrile seizures have a 1 in 20 chance of developing epilepsy in later life.
People who have not had febrile seizures have around a 1 to 2 in 100 chance of developing epilepsy.
Page last reviewed: 26 November 2019 Next review due: 26 November 2022
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Signs Your Child Is Having A Seizure
Seizures are an abnormal electrical discharge in the brain, and believe it or not, are fairly common in kids.
Seizures can be frightening to witness, but not all seizures are that obvious. So its important to know the possible signs.
Its tough to look for just one or two things, says Luke Tomycz, M.D., a neurosurgeon at Joseph M. Sanzari Childrens Hospital and Hackensack University Medical Center. Seizures can look very different in different people.
Is My Child Having A Seizure How To Spot Seizures In Children
- Is My Child Having A Seizure? How…
We commonly associate seizures with epilepsy, but if a child is having a seizure, this doesnt necessarily mean that the child has epilepsy. There are other reasons why the child could be having a seizure. If a child appears to be having a seizure or experiencing convulsions, dont panic and try to remain calm.
According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke , febrile seizures occur in 2 to 5 percent of children in the U.S. before age 5.
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Treatments For Seizures In Children
Following any seizure, perform first aid. Where a seizure continues for an extended period of time , seek medical assistance. It might be necessary for a health professional to give medication to stop it.
If a child experiences multiple seizures, regular medication might be needed. Several different medications might need to be tried to find one that is effective. Other treatments, such as surgery or vagus nerve stimulation therapy, are sometimes used.
What Causes Seizures In Children
A seizure is an abnormal electrical discharge in the brain. There are many different types of seizures and many different reasons this can occur in a child. Not all seizures are caused by epilepsy. Other causes of seizures in children can include high fever , infection or traumatic head injury.
For other kids, when they get very upset and hold their breath, they have an event that looks like a seizure where they pass out or have some stiffening or shaking. This is not considered an epileptic seizure but rather a response to the child holding their breath.
Epileptic seizures occur when sudden electrical discharges in the brain happen without another cause provoking it. Anyone at any age can develop epilepsy, but young children and older adults are at greatest risk. People with epilepsy may identify triggers that increase chance of seizure. Common seizure triggers can include illness, not taking epilepsy medication, stress, flashing lights, certain times of day, dehydration or lack of sleep.
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