Relation between Febrile Seizure Recurrence and Hyponatremia in Children: A Single-center Trial

BACKGROUND: Febrile seizure (FS) is one of the most common types of seizure in pediatrics. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to compare serum sodium in children with simple or recurrent FS and seizure without fever. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional prospective study conducted between September 2015 and April 2017 in patients aged between 6 months and 6 years, who were admitted to a tertiary educational medical center in the north of Iran. Patients were categorized into three groups, group A: simple FS, group B: recurrent FS, and group C: afebrile seizure. Serum sodium level was measured on admission and/or when the seizure occurred. RESULTS: The study included 248 patients aged 6 months to 6 years. Their mean age was 22.38 ± 1.34 months. Hyponatremia was found in 6% of group A, 7.5% of group B, and 6% of group C. The mean sodium level in group A (134.46 ± 2.3 mEq/L) and group B (134.35 ± 2.06 mEq/L) did not disclose meaningful difference, but it was significantly lower in febrile groups than in the control group. CONCLUSION: Although the results did not show that the lower level of serum sodium increased the risk of seizure recurrence during the next 24h in febrile illness, lower serum sodium concentration was more common in FS groups.