Seizures in Children

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Created on Friday, 07 March 2014 16:19
Written by Matthew Drew

seizures in childrenVERMONT - Seizures are a very common problem in the United States. Being prepared for that unexpected event is one of the most important things any one person can do.There are many things people can do to help reduce the risk of seizures, and may even completely prevent them.

Experts say that there are ways to help someone in the unlikely event that a seizure happens. Lyndon State Head Athletic Trainer Evita Sandoval explains what to do if someone is having a seizure.

"You want to remove all objects away from them and try and un-do any restrictive clothing," Sandoval said. "You don't put anything in there mouth and just make sure they are breathing... make sure they have an airway."

When in the heat of the moment, people tend to freeze up. Often times, bystanders don't even need to call for emergency medical help as seizures don't last more than a few minutes. According to webmd.com, More than seventy percent of seizures are unidentifiable.

"Seizures can be brought on by almost anything. Intoxication, drug abuse, low blood sugar and head trauma," she said. "Basically anything that throws off the chemical balance of the head can cause a seizure."

So what happens to a child when they are having a seizure? The brain has a lot of small cells called neurons and the cells essentially talk to one another through impulses. They shouldn't, however, send out impulses at the same time. But when they do, that is when a seizure occurs.

"You see a lot more seizures in children in the winter months because of higher fevers," Sandoval explains. "There's no specific age group where seizures happen. If a child under the age of four has a fever of 103...104...then you have to be very cautious."

A few tips can help parents when or if their child is having a seizure. It can be extremely difficult to identify a seizure in a child, and most doctors recommend that you keep a small video camera near your child, that way you can record the seizure. Showing this to your doctor will help them identify the type of seizure, and what kind of treatment is necessary.

"Chronic seizures are the most common, those are the ones caused by epilepsy. The seizures caused by anything else are just seizures." she said.