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Factors associated with ambulance requests for febrile seizures

Rie Sakai1, Eiji Marui

  • 1Department of Public Health, Juntendo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan. riesakai@med.juntendo.ac.jp

Pediatric Neurology
|July 22, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Parental and patient history of febrile seizures are linked to ambulance use. Public education on febrile seizures may reduce unnecessary emergency calls, but sibling history showed no association.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Emergency Medicine
  • Neurology

Background:

  • Febrile seizures are common in young children.
  • Ambulance utilization for febrile seizures can be high.
  • Understanding factors influencing ambulance requests is crucial for resource allocation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify factors associated with ambulance requests for febrile seizures.
  • To inform strategies for reducing non-urgent ambulance use in pediatric emergencies.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective study of 10-year-old patients presenting with febrile seizures.
  • Analysis of medical records from Tokyo Metropolitan Toshima Hospital (April 2001-2006).
  • Investigated patient demographics, seizure history, family history of seizures, and hospital distance.

Main Results:

  • 310 patients requested ambulances, while 106 arrived independently.
  • Binomial logistic analysis revealed patient and parental history of febrile seizures as significant predictors of ambulance requests.
  • No association was found between sibling history of febrile seizures and ambulance requests.

Conclusions:

  • Patient and parental history of febrile seizures are key factors in ambulance use.
  • Public awareness campaigns and education on febrile seizures could decrease unnecessary ambulance requests.
  • The lack of association with sibling history highlights the need for targeted, early interventions and repeated education.

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