Febrile convulsions in a rural and an urban population

By means of personal interview of parents in their homes, using a questionnaire, the prevalence rate and some other factors associated with febrile convulsions, were determined in a rural and an urban population of Anambra State of Nigeria. Significantly different rates of 11.61% and 8.05% respectively were obtained for the rural and urban population surveyed. Other factors examined included age of onset and sex distribution, family history, recurrence rates, and severity of seizures. Clinical examination of affected children revealed that 2.9% of the children in the urban population had postictal neurological deficits, while the corresponding figure for the rural population was 5.5%.