Convulsion

[mummynumnum]

DD had a convulsion at nursery yesterday and was taken in ambulance to hospital. She is home now and doing fine. The hospital said that it was brought on by a high temperature and tonsilitus, which they diagnosed at hospital.

It was all so frightening and I have forgotten half the things they told me about what if it happens again and if it is likely to.

Will see GP in the next few days and go through things, but was hoping mumsnetters could give me some words of wisdom.

Thanks from a very worried mum

Depending on her age, and as long as she has no allergies, you could consider giving her calpol as soon as she starts feeling a bit feverish.

I don't know what the chances of recurrence are, but I know febrile convulsions are not uncommon.

Next time she has one, sponge her down with warm water (not tepid) and do not direct a fan directly on her as the latest thinking is that the body will react to attempts to cool the skin but trying to warm the skin up - exactly what you don't want.

The convulsion should soon pass but don't hesitate to call 999 if you've got any concerns!

my dd2 had a borderline febrile convulsion at around 8 months old - very high temp ( 41) caused it. They are quite common in children though.
I find the nurofen for children is better at getting the temp down quicker. There will be lots of other mners with similar experiences - don't worry.

I'll have to check but I don't think that nurofen has any anti-pyrexial properties whereas paracetamol-based medicine defo has...

I stand corrected. Ibuprofen does help with fever in children (have checked my drugs book). I don't think it works so well for adults which is why I give paracetamol.

we were advised to use both oatcake, alternate them every two hours.

Thanks. My head was in such a blur last night I forgot half the things I was told.

yep, it's very effective to do two hourly drugs - you know, alternating between calpol and nurofen.

I have been armed and ready with both.

how scary
DS had febrile convulsions at Easter - he was only 10 months old and it was bloody terrifying - his was also caused by a high temp
sounds like your nursery handled it very well
deffo alternate between calpol and ibuprofen
as soon as DS gets a temp now, he is dosed up immediately and we haven't had another episode
hope your DD is fully recovered now

Yes nursery was excellent and luckily I teach at a school 2 mins away so i could get there and go in the ambulance. She is having a lovely nap and just about to go up and check she is ok.

MY DS has had about 20 FC's and my DD has had 4.
Unless there is a genetic link of febrile convulsions it is unlikely she will have another and very few children ever have one after the age of 5

There is a lovely quite from Toddler Taming

"The short fever fit does not damage the child only it's mother's nerves."

I was always advised to give nurofen and calpol as they work in different ways and carry working while the other one wears off. It's also a good idea to find out the weight of your child and dose by weight. My DS is a big boy and always needed a much larger dose than it says on the packet.

The FC tends to happen when the suddenly temperature shoots up and in may cases with my DS it is the first sign we have known he was ill.

To be honest my son never remembers having them and always sleeps for ages afterward.
Unless

Hi mummynumnum, so sorry to hear you've had such a worrying experience.
My DS1 has had 12 febrile convulsions to date (first one at 11 months, he's now 2.5) - but it really is unusual for children to have so many and chances are your dd will never have another one.
I can reiterate the advice below on bringing a temperature down - regular doses of paracetemol & ibuprofen (you can even give them at the same time if you're struggling to keep a temperature down), stripping the child off to just a nappy, sponging with lukewarm water (damping hair works well) and letting a fan blow cool air nearby (but not directly on them).
If a febrile convulsion does occur, try to stay calm (very hard I know), ideally lay the child on their side and comfort & reassure them throughout. For my ds, they usually only last a few minutes, although it does feel like ages. We no longer take him to hospital every time, only if he seems particularly poorly.
Oh, and the best advice a doctor gave me was this: by all means do everything you can to bring the temp down, but for some children if its going to happen it will, so don't give yourself a nervous breakdown trying to prevent it.... that might seem strange, but i did find myself getting so stressed at the meerest hint that ds had a temperature, so it helps me now to be a litle more relaxed about it all.
Gosh sorry for going on and on - I hope some of my ramblings help a bit.

Sorry for repeating some of your comments christywhisty, I was typing mine very slowly so didn't read yours first

pinkpip
But your typing is better than mine

Not sure what the unless is doing at the end of my post

Thanks for all your support. It is very comforting. Had another very high temp this afternoon and brought it down with lots of your tips, so thanks very much. Had calpol, no effect on temp so doubled with ibuprofen and did the trick and within 15mins running round again. Weird how they recover so quickly.

DD had a second fit yesterday. Went to hosp again. Nursery spotted no sign of a temperature untill after it had happened and hosp could not find any obvious reason for it. Feel more anxious it could be something more sinister now.