Incidence of Febrile Seizures in Children with COVID-19
Min Jeong Han1,2,3, Jun Ho Heo4, Ji Seong Hwang5
1Department of Pediatrics, Jeonbuk National University Hospital, Jeonju 54907, Republic of Korea.
Insights
COVID-19 is a frequent cause of febrile seizures (FS) in young children, particularly after the Omicron variant emerged. This study found a 0.19% incidence of COVID-19-associated FS in children under five in Jeonbuk province.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Infectious Diseases
- Neurology
Background:
- Febrile seizures (FS) are common in young children.
- The emergence of COVID-19 has been linked to various neurological complications, including FS.
- The Omicron variant surge potentially increased the incidence of COVID-19-associated FS.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the incidence of COVID-19-associated febrile seizures in children under five years old.
- To analyze the characteristics of COVID-19-associated FS following the Omicron surge.
- To compare FS hospitalization rates before and after the Omicron variant.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of data from January 2020 to June 2022 in Jeonbuk province.
- Inclusion of confirmed COVID-19 cases in children under five and FS patients with COVID-19.
- Data sourced from the Ministry of Public Administration and Security and local hospitals.
Main Results:
- Out of 33,457 COVID-19 cases in children under five, 64 (0.19%) developed FS.
- All FS cases occurred after the Omicron variant surge.
- Complex FS occurred in 39.1% of cases, and 1.6% had febrile status epilepticus. No COVID-19 patients were hospitalized for FS post-Omicron, unlike before.
Conclusions:
- COVID-19, especially post-Omicron, is a significant cause of febrile seizures in young children.
- The incidence of COVID-19-associated FS requires monitoring, particularly regarding complex seizures.
- Further research is needed to understand the long-term neurological implications of COVID-19 in pediatric populations.
Abstract:
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a common cause of febrile seizures (FS), especially after the Omicron surge. This study aimed to determine the incidence of COVID-19-associated FS in children. The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in patients aged below five years residing in the Jeonbuk province from January 2020 to June 2022 was obtained from official data provided by the Ministry of Public Administration and Security. During the same period, data on FS patients with COVID-19 were obtained from all local hospitals capable of FS treatment and were analyzed retrospectively. The number of children under five years of age in Jeonbuk was 62,772, of which 33,457 (53.2%) were diagnosed with COVID-19 during the study period. Of these, 476 patients (1.4%) required hospitalization, and 64 (0.19%, 44 boys; 68.8%: 20 girls; 31.2%) developed FS. All patients with FS presented with symptoms after the Omicron surge. Before the Omicron variant, 23.4% of the patients (89 of 381) required hospitalization; however, no children with COVID-19 were hospitalized for FS. Twenty-five patients (39.1%) had complex FS while one (1.6%) presented with febrile status epilepticus. Forty-two patients (65.6%) experienced first-time FS with an average of 1.5 convulsive events.
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