Why do children have seizures?

Seizures are a sudden disorder of brain activity, which manifests itself in disorders of the motor, sensitive, psychoemotional and vegetative spheres. Sometimes convulsions can occur in a conscious state, and in some cases unconscious or with a partially conserved consciousness. Seizures in children occur at any age, but experts noted that more than half of them occur at the age of up to three years. Often seizures are identified with manifestations of epilepsy, however this is not always true. The very first manifestations of convulsive syndrome in children often simply pass without a trace. The diagnosis of epilepsy is put only 0,% -1% of the child population, while convulsive attacks occur in 7-10% of children.

Why do children have seizures?

Seizures in children can occur for various reasons:

• Perinatal disorders occur due to hypoxia of the brain, birth trauma, intrauterine infections (rubella, cytomegalia, toxoplasmosis), intracranial hemorrhages.
• Injuries to the head - bruises or concussion of the brain.
• Infections - encephalitis, meningitis, abscess of the brain.
• Raise body temperature.
• Metabolic disorders are low levels, sodium, magnesium, calcium, blood sugar, high sodium levels in the blood, or kidney failure.
• Neurological disorders - congenital defects of the central nervous system, epilepsy, hereditary metabolic diseases, tuberous sclerosis, brain tumors.
• The withdrawal of narcotic drugs is a cramp in children from mothers who use drugs.

Seizures in children and their clinical varieties

Cramps are:

• Tonic (muscle tension of limbs, torso synchronous or asynchronous);
• Clonic (rhythmic muscle contractions throughout the body, synchronous or asynchronous);
• Tonic-clonic (a combination of both kinds of convulsions, with the predominance of one of them);
• Myoclonic (symmetrical contraction of muscle groups or individual muscles);
• Atonic (a characteristic decrease in muscle tone);
• Absences (short-term cessation of speech and motor activity, sudden, with fading eyes);
• Infantile spasms (symmetrical flexion or extensor spasms of the muscles of the trunk, extremities, neck).

Cramps in children under one year

Very often cramps in the toes or in other muscles in newborn children are single, and therefore do not require further treatment. Recurrent convulsions require special examination, the correct selection of anticonvulsant drugs and regular follow-up at a neurologist at the place of residence or in a children's epileptologist. Seizures in young children, if they do not pass at all, become more pronounced, such manifestations allow the district pediatrician to suspect manifestations of epilepsy and prescribe an additional examination for the baby: MRI of the brain, EEG, analyzes and other studies.

The prognosis of convulsions in children

The prognosis for infantile cramps is different, if the child has episodic cramps in the calves of the legs or in the muscles of the hands, then the prognosis can be called favorable. The idiopathic nature of seizures also does not foretaste troubles. Worsens the prognosis of signs of organic damage to the brain, pronounced or hidden. Nevertheless, properly prescribed treatment and attentive attitude of the mother to the behavior of the baby can correct the diagnosis and prevent the deterioration of the child's condition. Do not despair, if the doctor has diagnosed your child with a "convulsive syndrome", modern medicine has a whole arsenal of funds that stop this condition and prevent the progression of the disease.