Current Clinical Features of Febrile Seizures in a Pediatric Emergency Room / 이화의대지

OBJECTIVES: To expand current knowledge on febrile seizures (FSs), the most common childhood seizure disorder, we investigated clinical features and risk factors of FS in the pediatric emergency department of a center in western Seoul. METHODS: Children with FS that visited the pediatric emergency room of the Ewha Womans University Medical Center from January to December 2014 were included in this study. A retrospective medical record review was conducted for a total of 404 seizure events relative to 265 patients. RESULTS: A total of 150 boys and 115 girls were enrolled. Children presenting their first FSs were 70.9% (n=188). Average age of FS onset was 28.9 months. Family history was reported in 95 children (36.8%) with higher relevance of paternal inheritance (44.2%, n=42/95). More than half of the seizures (56.4%, n=228/404) occurred on the first day of fever. The most common cause of fever was upper respiratory tract infection (65.8%, n=266/404). Children attending a daycare center had higher incidence of multiple FS compared to those cared for at home. Approximately one third of seizure events (31.7%, n=128/404) were admission cases, mainly because of prolonged fever. CONCLUSION: FS is a common neurologic disorder with relatively high admission rate among pediatric emergency department visits. Daycare attendance is associated with current increased incidence of multiple FS. Further study with long-term follow up is necessary to expand knowledge on improving clinical care strategy in FS.

Clinical Characteristics and Epidemiology of Enteroviral Meningitis Compared to Non-Enteroviral Meningitis in Infants under 3 Months of Age / 이화의대지

OBJECTIVES: To compare the epidemiology, clinical presentation, laboratory findings, seasonality and hospital course of enteroviral meningitis (EM) and non-enteroviral meningitis (NEM) cases in infants under 3 months of age. METHODS: A retrospective chart review was performed of infants under 3 months of age or less with viral meningitis admitted to Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital between January 2010 and December 2016. RESULTS: EM patients were more likely to have siblings compared with NEM. Most of EM was diagnosed during the summer season. Almost 80% of EM was diagnosed between July and September. Fever lasted longer in EM patients compared to NEM. White blood cell count (WBC) from the cerebrospinal fluid was higher in EM patients compared with NEM patients. WBC in blood were lower in EM patients compared with NEM patients. C-reactive protein was lower in EM patients compared with NEM patients. Most of the patients were initially started on antibiotics therapy to rule out bacterial meningitis. EM patients received shorter duration of antibiotic treatment compared with NEM patients. CONCLUSION: This study was conducted to augment the understanding of the incidence, epidemiology, transmission in infants, clinical presentation, laboratory findings, seasonality and hospital courses of enteroviral meningitis compared to NEM. Early recognition, rapid diagnosis and proper clinical management can reduce duration of antibiotic treatment.