The incidence and aetiologies of neonatal convulsions within a hospital population were reviewed over 10 years (1971-80 inclusive). Three periods, 1971-4 (12 904) live births). 1975-7 (13 304 live births), and 1978-80 (14 849 live births) during this decade are compared. The overall incidence of neonatal convulsions rose from 2-6/1000 and then to 8.6/1000 live births. Most convulsions were asso...

The causes of febrile convulsions are usually benign. Such convulsions are common in children and their long-term consequences are rare. However, other causes of seizures, such as intracranial infections, must be excluded before diagnosis, especially in infants and younger children. Diagnosis is based mainly on history taking, and further investigations into the condition are not generally need...

Do seizures damage the brain? If they do, how often does it happen? The answers are very dependent on the type of research that is used to investigate the questions. Evidence has come from two areas of study that are of particular interest to paediatricians: the outlook for children who have febrile convulsions, and the prognosis after status epilepticus (in this paper febrile convulsions lasti...

It is the purpose of this paper to report a case in which fatal convulsions occurred during convalescence from whooping cough, at a time when paroxysms of coughing were absent. This case is not unique, a similar one having been reported by Hiller and Grinker (1930). These authors point out that while air embolism or circulatory stasis may be a satisfactory explanation of convulsions associated ...

Factors affecting the two-stage equilibration rebreathing procedure for the measurement of mixed venous Pco2 are discussed. The most important practical conclusion is that the volume of gas in the bag should not be more than twice the tidal volume; but the exact ratio is not critical. Suitable equipment is described. Practical problems and variations in technique are described in detail. We are...