Prevalence, Aetiology and Outcome of Febrile Convulsions at the Wesley Guild Hospital, Ilesa, South-West Nigeria

Background: Febrile convulsions continue to be a common occurrence in paediatric practice in Nigeria and Africa. Constant review of the subject from time to time is therefore desirable.
Methods: We prospectively studied over a seven month period the prevalence, aetiology and outcome of febrile convulsions among children admitted into the children emergency room (CHER) of the Wesley Guild Hospital (WGH), Ilesa, South West Nigeria.
Results: Over the study period, febrile convulsions accounted for 18.0% of all the 880 admissions into the CHER. The children were aged 3 months to 6years with male: Female ratio of 1.1:1. Malaria was the commonest identified aetiology associated with febrile convulsions in this study. It occurred in 80.4% of the 158 children with febrile convulsions, followed by respiratory tract infections. Outcome was good as none of the patients developed neurologic deficit or died.
Conclusion: Febrile convulsions are common among children admitted at the CHER of the WGH, Ilesa with malaria being the major aetiology. Adequate malaria control may reduce the burden associated with febrile convulsions in this environment.