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EEG for children with complex febrile seizures
Pankaj B Shah1, Saji James, S Elayaraja
1Department of Community Medicine, Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute, Sri. Ramachandra University, Ramachandra Nagar, Porur, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, 600116.
Insights
No randomized controlled trials were found to evaluate electroencephalographs (EEG) for complex febrile seizures in children. Further research is needed to determine the utility and optimal timing of EEG after these seizures.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Clinical Neurophysiology
Background:
- Complex febrile seizures, characterized by prolonged duration, recurrence, or focal neurological signs, are common in young children.
- Electroencephalography (EEG) is often recommended for children with complex febrile seizures, but evidence supporting its use and timing is limited.
- This review addresses the diagnostic utility of EEG in this pediatric population.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the use and optimal timing of electroencephalography (EEG) after complex febrile seizures in children under five years of age.
Main Methods:
- A systematic search of major databases including Cochrane Epilepsy Group Register, CENTRAL, MEDLINE, and ClinicalTrials.gov was conducted.
- Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) examining the utility and timing of EEG following complex febrile seizures in children were included.
- Review authors independently assessed study eligibility, with disagreements resolved through discussion.
Main Results:
- A comprehensive search identified 33 potentially eligible studies.
- However, no randomized controlled trials (RCTs) met the inclusion criteria for this review.
- This indicates a significant gap in high-quality evidence regarding EEG use in complex febrile seizures.
Conclusions:
- There is a lack of evidence from randomized controlled trials to support or refute the use of EEG and its timing after complex febrile seizures in children.
- The findings highlight the need for well-designed randomized controlled trials to establish the role of EEG in managing complex febrile seizures.
- Future research should focus on planning RCTs with adequate sample sizes to compare EEG versus no EEG groups.
Background:
Febrile seizures can be classified as simple or complex. Complex febrile seizures are associated with fever that lasts longer than 15 minutes, occur more than once within 24 hours and are confined to one side of the child's body. It is common in some countries for doctors to recommend an electroencephalograph (EEG) for children with complex febrile seizures. A limited evidence base is available to support the use of EEG and its timing after complex febrile seizures among children.
Objectives:
To assess the use of EEG and its timing after complex febrile seizures in children younger than five years of age.
Search Methods:
We searched the Cochrane Epilepsy Group Specialised Register (17 October 2013), the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL, The Cochrane Library, Issue 9, 2013), MEDLINE (17 October 2013) and the Clinical Trial Registry (ClinicalTrials.gov (17 October 2013)). We applied no language restrictions.
Selection Criteria:
All randomised controlled trials (RCTs) that examined the utility of an EEG and its timing after complex febrile seizures in children.
Data Collection And Analysis:
Review authors selected and retrieved the articles and independently assessed which articles should be included. Disagreements were resolved by discussion and by consultation with the Cochrane Epilepsy Group. We applied standard methodological procedures expected by The Cochrane Colloboration.
Main Results:
Of 33 potentially eligible studies, no RCTs met the inclusion criteria.
Authors' Conclusions:
We found no RCTs as evidence to support or refute the use of EEG and its timing after complex febrile seizures among children. A randomised controlled trial can be planned in such a way that participants are randomly assigned to the EEG group and to the non-EEG group with sufficient sample size.
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