Understanding Seizures in Babies: Causes and Different Types
Seizures happen when there is a sudden burst of abnormal electrical activity in a child’s brain, which for a short time disrupts how the brain normally works. Most seizures stop on their own within a few minutes. They are quite common, and up to 10 per cent of people worldwide experience at least one seizure during their lifetime, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Acute seizure is one of the major neurological emergencies in babies. Status epilepticus is continuous seizure activity associated with 3% childhood mortality.
When it comes to seizures in babies, they can look very different from one child to another. If a child has repeated seizures without an obvious trigger, doctors call this condition epilepsy. The reassuring part is that many babies respond well to treatment, and some even outgrow epilepsy as they get older.
What are the Causes of Seizures in Babies?Seizures fall into two main groups: provoked and unprovoked.
Provoked Seizures Provoked seizures occur when there is a clear trigger affecting the brain or the body at that moment. In simple terms, something specific pushes the brain into having a seizure. These seizures are relatively uncommon, and once the underlying problem is treated, the chances of having another seizure are often much lower.
These are the common causes of provoked seizures:
Unprovoked seizures happen without any obvious or immediate trigger. Even after detailed tests, doctors may not always be able to pinpoint a clear cause.
Possible causes of unprovoked seizures include:
Focal Seizures These start in one specific area of the brain. In some cases, the abnormal activity stays limited to that area, while in others, it can spread to nearby regions. Because of this, symptoms can vary widely depending on which part of the brain is involved.
A child may experience unusual sensations or feelings, such as:
Generalised seizures involve both sides of the brain from the very beginning. The child usually loses consciousness during this seizure.
Types of generalised seizures include:
3. Infantile Spasms
These are a rare but serious type of seizure that usually occurs during the first year of life. They involve brief, sudden jerking movements that often happen in clusters, especially when the baby is waking up or falling asleep.
Early on, these spasms may appear mild, but they can become more noticeable over time. Quick diagnosis and treatment are very important, as untreated infantile spasms can affect a child’s development.
4. Status Epilepticus
This refers to a seizure that lasts longer than 5 minutes or repeated seizures where the child does not fully recover between episodes.
There is a significant risk of brain injury if a seizure continues for more than 30 minutes.
5. Febrile Seizures
Febrile seizures occur in young babies between 6 months and 5 years of age and are triggered by fever. They often involve convulsions and can be frightening to witness. But most babies outgrow them and do not develop long-term problems.
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When it comes to seizures in babies, they can look very different from one child to another. If a child has repeated seizures without an obvious trigger, doctors call this condition epilepsy. The reassuring part is that many babies respond well to treatment, and some even outgrow epilepsy as they get older.
What are the Causes of Seizures in Babies?Seizures fall into two main groups: provoked and unprovoked.
These are the common causes of provoked seizures:
- Very high or very low blood sugar levels
- Head injury or trauma to the brain
- Infections of the brain, such as meningitis or encephalitis
- Severely high blood pressure
- Stroke or sudden disruption of blood flow to the brain
- Kidney or liver problems that allow toxins to build up in the body
- High fever, especially in infants and young babies
Unprovoked seizures happen without any obvious or immediate trigger. Even after detailed tests, doctors may not always be able to pinpoint a clear cause.
Possible causes of unprovoked seizures include:
- Genetic or inherited conditions
- Structural changes or lesions in the brain
- Brain tumours
- Previous stroke or brain infection
- Brain injury, including injury that occurred during birth
- An imbalance in brain chemicals that help nerve cells communicate
- Exposure to toxins or poisoning
- Certain medicines or recreational drugs
- Degenerative brain disorders
- Maternal illness or complications during pregnancy
- Lack of oxygen during or immediately after birth
- Brain malformations present at birth
- Serious infections
- Metabolic problems such as low blood sugar or low calcium levels
A child may experience unusual sensations or feelings, such as:
- Sense of falling or spinning
- Pins and needles
- Feeling that familiar surroundings suddenly seem strange
- Sudden wave of fear or anger
- Hear buzzing sounds
- Taste or smell things that are not actually present
- Seeing bright or vivid images
- Lip-smacking
- Grunting sounds
- Clumsy or repetitive movements
- Twitching in one arm or leg
- Staring spells
- Wandering without purpose
- Focal aware seizures: The child stays alert, remembers what happened, but may not be able to speak or interact.
- Focal impaired awareness seizures: The child loses awareness of surroundings and may not recall the event.
Generalised seizures involve both sides of the brain from the very beginning. The child usually loses consciousness during this seizure.
Types of generalised seizures include:
- Absence seizures, also known as petit mal seizures: Brief episodes where the child appears to stare blankly or “zone out.” These usually last less than 30 seconds and can happen many times a day. The child quickly returns to normal activity and often does not remember the episode. These seizures commonly begin between 4 and 12 years of age, and many babies eventually outgrow them.
- Atonic seizures: A sudden loss of muscle tone, causing the child’s head to drop or the body to collapse suddenly. These are often called drop attacks.
- Myoclonic seizures: Short, shock-like muscle jerks that may affect one or more limbs and often occur in clusters.
- Tonic seizures: Sudden stiffening of the muscles in the body, arms, or legs. If the child is standing, this can lead to a fall.
- Tonic-clonic seizures, previously called grand mal seizures: The child loses consciousness, the body first stiffens, and then rhythmic jerking of the arms and legs begins. Breathing may become irregular, the face may appear bluish, and tongue biting or loss of bladder control can occur. These seizures usually last a few minutes.
These are a rare but serious type of seizure that usually occurs during the first year of life. They involve brief, sudden jerking movements that often happen in clusters, especially when the baby is waking up or falling asleep.
Early on, these spasms may appear mild, but they can become more noticeable over time. Quick diagnosis and treatment are very important, as untreated infantile spasms can affect a child’s development.
4. Status Epilepticus
This refers to a seizure that lasts longer than 5 minutes or repeated seizures where the child does not fully recover between episodes.
There is a significant risk of brain injury if a seizure continues for more than 30 minutes.
5. Febrile Seizures
Febrile seizures occur in young babies between 6 months and 5 years of age and are triggered by fever. They often involve convulsions and can be frightening to witness. But most babies outgrow them and do not develop long-term problems.
- Simple febrile seizures last less than 15 minutes and happen only once in a day.
- Complex febrile seizures last longer, occur more than once in 24 hours, or affect only one side of the body.
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