Iron and vitamin D levels are associated with febrileconvulsions

Senturk, M. Iron and vitamin D levels are associated with febrile convulsions. DPU Faculty of Medicine, Medical Speciality Thesis in Department of Pediatrics, Kütahya, 2018. Febrile convulsions are the most common type of seizures in children with benign, coexisting with fever, and occur in 2-5% of all children. In the etiopathogenesis of Febrile convulsions, fever, age and genetic predisposition have important roles. It is known that iron deficiency, which is the most frequent nutritional deficiency in pediatric patients, plays an active role in many neurological problems. Although there is insufficient study of the effect of vitamin D deficiency in humans on early brain development, vitamin D has been shown to be a neuroprotective effect on brain cells in vitro. Our study retrospectively examined the iron and vitamin D levels of the patients who applied for the purposeful and febrile convulsions showed the presence of the link between them and the etiopathogenesis of febrile convulsions. The patient group of the study consisted of neurological disorders such as afebrile convulsions, cerebral palsy, mental retardation between 6 months and 5 years, referred to the simple and complicated febrile convulsions diagnoses of the Department of Pediatrics, Evliya Çelebi Training and Research Hospital Children's Health and Diseases Clinic between January 2015 and December 2016 , 78 patients with no blood electrolyte imbalance, no antiepileptic drug and no central nervous system (CNS) infection, and 118 patients with the same age group under the same age group who were followed up for febrile diseases except febrile convulsions . Retrospective clinical, socio-demographic characteristics and laboratory results of patients were recorded from patient files and hospital automation system. Vitamin D levels did not differ in the FK group, while iron deficiency and iron deficiency anemia were observed more frequently in the FK group. Treatment of anemia of iron deficiency anemia especially in children between 6 months and 5 years of age is thought to prevent febrile diseases from being accompanied by seizures due to increase of convulsions risk.Key words: Febrile Convulsions, Vitamin D, Iron deficiency