Questions

  1. My baby sometimes has seizures. What causes seizures, and what are the symptoms? How should they be treated?
  2. My baby has a bowel movement every two to three days, even though she is breastfed and takes vitamin AD as prescribed by the doctor. Is this frequency of bowel movements normal? Could it be caused by the vitamin AD?

Answers

  1. Sudden seizures are one of the common emergencies in infants, with a prevalence rate among children under 6 years old that is 10-15 times higher than in adults. Sudden seizures occur due to temporary dysfunction of the brain, as infants’ cerebral cortex is not fully developed and their myelin sheath is not adequately formed, resulting in less effective control of excitement and inhibition compared to adults. In addition, infants are more susceptible to acute infectious diseases, which are also common causes of seizures. Possible causes of seizures include:
    • Central nervous system infections, such as purulent or tuberculous meningitis, brain abscess, and parasitic brain infection.
    • Non-central nervous system infections, such as upper respiratory tract infection, pneumonia, acute bacillary dysentery, and acute pyelonephritis.
    • Non-infectious causes, such as incomplete brain development, hydrocephalus, intracranial hemorrhage, cerebrovascular disease, tetanus, hysteria, etc.
    • Metabolic disorders, such as hypocalcemia, hypomagnesemia, hypoglycemia, uremia, vitamin B1 or B6 deficiency, acidosis, brain anoxia, etc. Drug poisoning may also trigger seizures.