Epileptic status on children: diagnostic and therapeutic general aspects

Abstract

© 2019, Sociedad Venezolana de Farmacologia y de Farmacologia Clinica y Terapeutica. All rights reserved. Epileptic status (ES) is a very common neurological pathology in children that requires immediate attention. Seizures are abnormal and excessive synchronous discharges of neurons in the brain that are reflected through an electroencephalogram, these have a classification based on states according to their duration and their clinical expression depends on brain activity extension. Several international guidelines define ES as a clinical or electrographic activity continues for more than 5 minutes, its incidence varies according to age, with children under 5 years being the most affected ones. However, recurrence rates are considerably higher due to central nervous system infections and affect children in developing countries to a greater extent. Specifically, febrile seizures affect infants who have greater exposure to infections of any origin, this in turn implies a mortality rate that is higher in this age group compared to adults. Its diagnosis is focused on identifying the episodes and carrying out complementary studies to discover the underlying cause, which will vary according to the case: laboratory tests, lumbar puncture and / or computed tomogra-phy. On the other hand, the treatment of ES should be aimed at stopping seizures as soon as possible, focusing on general measures with special attention to good airway management and assertive medication use.