A seizure occurs when the brain functions abnormally, resulting in a change in movement, attention, or level of awareness. Different types of seizures may occur in different parts of the brain and may be localized (affect only a part of the body) or widespread (affect the whole body). Seizures may occur for many reasons, especially in children.
Charlie has had two types of seizures that we are aware of.
The first was a Febrile Seizure brought on by a high fever. In Charlie's case, his seizure resulted in loss of consciousness, cyanosis (a bluish tinge to the skin that can occur when there is a lack of oxygen to the brain), as well as apnea (stopped breathing). We were lucky in that this particular seizure happened in the pediatricians office, who called 911 and we spent the next five days in the hospital accessing his condition and treating the cause of the seizure, which ended up being a uninary tract infection which caused the high fever that led to the seizure.
The second was a Convulsive Seizure brought on by a pallid breath holding spell. Pallid BHS are unpredictable. They usually occur in response to being startled, frightened, in pain, immunized, or injured, particularly after hitting the head.
In a pallid BHS the brain sends a signal via the vagus nerve that severely slows the heart rate, leading to a temporary cessation of breathing and loss of consciousness. In Charlie's case, he was extremely angry and was in the middle of a temper tantrum when he threw himself backward, hitting his head. He immediately began rhythmic jerking and muscle spasms. He had difficulty breathing and rolling of the eyes, followed by a period of drowsiness that is called the postictal period. This group of seizures is common with grand mal seizures. Unfortunately, since originally writing this post, Charlie has experienced several more of these and as sad as it is to say, we are beginning to get used to them.
Although seizures have many known causes, for 3 out of 4 children, the cause remains unknown. In many of these cases, there is some family history of seizures. The remaining causes include infections such as meningitis, developmental problems such as cerebral palsy, head trauma, and many other less common causes.
