Occult bacteremia in children with simple febrile seizures
J. M. Chamberlain and R. L. Gorman
Department of Pediatrics, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore.
The controversy surrounding the diagnostic workup for simple febrile
seizures has centered around the lumbar puncture. This focus has obscured
the potential importance of other tests. A retrospective study was
performed to determine the frequency of occult bacteremia in simple febrile
seizures. In a pediatric emergency department, we identified 115 cases of
simple febrile seizures in children treated as outpatients. Blood cultures
were performed in 93 (81%) of 115 patients; five (5.4%) were positive.
Children were less likely to have blood cultures performed if they were
older than 24 months or had a medical history of simple febrile seizures.
However, neither age nor history of febrile seizures affected the risk of
bacteremia. These data suggest that patients with simple febrile seizures
are at approximately the same risk for bacteremia as children with fever
alone. Patients with simple febrile seizures should be treated in the same
manner as other patients of the same age with regard to the performance of
blood cultures.
