I believe that many parents who follow me are not unfamiliar with such scenarios: when a child has a fever, he or she suddenly develops shaking limbs, unconsciousness, purple lips and pale face, which lasts for several minutes and then stops by itself. It is possible that some of the baby’s father or mother also had the above scenario as a child. What exactly are febrile convulsions? Febrile convulsions, also known as hyperthermia, are the most common type of convulsion in children, with an incidence of 2%-5% in Europe and North America, 7% in Japan, and 4.4% in China. The age of onset of first febrile convulsions is 3 months to 5 years, with a peak at 18 months, slightly more in boys than girls. The vast majority of children with febrile convulsions do not have further seizures after the age of 5 years. Currently, many international scholars define febrile convulsions as: v Age of onset: 3 months to 5 years of age v Convulsions occurring at a body temperature of 38 degrees or higher v Excluding intracranial infections and other organic or metabolic diseases that cause convulsions v No previous history of febrile convulsions (epilepsy, etc.) Most convulsions occur at the beginning of acute respiratory infections or acute infectious diseases (mostly seen at the beginning of the disease when the body temperature rises suddenly, 70% induced by upper sensation). ), mostly within 24 hours after the onset of fever. The vast majority of febrile convulsions are generalized, accounting for more than 80%, and a few are partial. The classification of febrile convulsions Febrile convulsions are divided into simple febrile convulsions and complex febrile convulsions. Correct typing can provide a basis for rational selection of treatment plan and assessment of prognosis. Risk factors for the development of febrile convulsions Genetic factors 1. 55.6% of babies have febrile convulsions if both parents have a history of febrile convulsions; 2. 21.7% of babies have febrile convulsions if one parent has a history of febrile convulsions; 3. 5.5% of babies have febrile convulsions if neither parent has a history of febrile convulsions; Other: prematurity, poor intellectual-motor development etc. The majority of children with febrile convulsions do not have recurrences after their first episode; however, 30-40% of children may have recurrences, 90% of which occur within 2 years after the first episode. There are many conditions that cause relapses, with large individual differences, depending on the interaction of genetic and environmental factors. Risk factors for recurrence 1. family history of febrile convulsions; 2. age of first attack less than 18 months; 3. convulsions occurring at temperatures below 38°C; 4. complex febrile convulsions at first attack; 5. permanent neurological abnormalities; Prof. Berg has conducted a large data analysis suggesting that those with 1 or 2 of the above have a recurrence chance of about 30%, and those satisfying 3 or more of the above have a recurrence chance In the absence of any risk factors, recurrence still occurs in 14% of patients. The prognosis of febrile convulsions is relatively good as most of the febrile convulsions do not recur after the age of 5 years. However, there is still a proportion of children with febrile convulsions who slowly develop fever-free convulsions followed by epilepsy. Most experts and scholars believe that prolonged febrile convulsions have the potential to lead to temporal lobe epilepsy. As early as 1964, Falconer found in postoperative pathology based on 100 patients with refractory temporal lobe epilepsy that 41 of them had medial temporal lobe sclerosis, and 32% of these 41 patients had a history of long-duration febrile convulsive seizures. Meanwhile, in recent years, clinical and numerous experimental studies have found that repeated convulsive seizures, long-duration convulsive seizures, and persistent status epilepticus can cause neuronal damage, keratinization, and eventually sclerosis with hippocampal tissue damage, mainly in the hippocampus.