Relationship between febrile seizure and anemia

Background: Febrile seizure is the most common convulsive disorder which occurs in 2% to 4% of children. Although the exact etiology of febrile seizure is unknown, some risk factors such as anemia have been reported. Due to high occurrence of febrile seizure in this area and because of the controversial result regarding the relationship between anemia and febrile seizure in pervious researches, this study was carried out to determine this relationship.
Methods: This case-control study was done on 60 children with febrile seizure (case) and 60 febrile children without seizure (control) referred to Kashan Shahid Beheshti hospital during 2003. Two groups were matched for age and sex, type of feeding and use of supplemental iron. In all children hemoglobin level, hematocrit and red blood cell indexes were determined and data analyzed statistically by chi square and Fisher exact tests.
Findings: This study revealed that 12% of patients in case group and 20% of children in control group had anemia (p=0.327). In children above 6 months and male subjects anemia was more common. Febrile seizures occurred most commonly at the age of 6 to 24 months.
Conclusion: The risk of febrile seizure occurrence in anemic children seems to be less common than in children who do not suffer from anemia.