Association between iron status and febrile seizures in children

OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to determine the association between iron status and febrile seizures in children aged 6 months to 5 years. METHODS This prospective case-control study enrolled 300 children who presented with febrile seizures (case group) and 200 children who presented with a febrile illness without seizures (control group) from March 2007 to January 2009. Hemoglobin, mean corpuscular volume and serum ferritin concentration were compared in the two groups in relation to age, sex and use of iron supplementation. RESULTS Patients with febrile seizures were more frequently iron deficient as defined by a serum ferritin level below 20 ng/dl (56.6% vs. 24.8%, P=0.0001). Mean hemoglobin concentration was 10.8 g/dl in the control group and 11.7 g/dl in the case group (P<0.05). The difference between groups in mean corpuscular volume was not statistically significant (75.5 fl vs. 74.4 fl, P<0.130). CONCLUSION Low serum ferritin concentration and low iron status may be risk factors for the development of febrile seizures.