Comparison of serum selenium levels between children with simple and complex febrile convulsions

Background: Febrile convul-sion (FC) is the most common type of seizure with unknown etiology in children. Oxida-tive stress can predispose the brain to sei-zure. Selenium (Se) is a micronutrient, which acts as an essential anti-oxidant in the brain. This study aimed to evaluate serum Se levels in children with simple FC (SFC) compared to the cases of complex FC (CFC). Materials and methods: In this analytical cross-sectional study, conducted in 17-Shahrivar Hospital, Rasht, Iran, from 2017 to 2018, 45 patients with SFC and 45 patients with CFC were en-rolled. Serum Se level was measured using a spectrophotometer. Results: The two groups were similar in terms of demographic char-acteristics including age, sex, and location. The mean serum Se levels were lower in the CFC group compared to the SFC patients (54.94 ?? 23.19 vs. 67.54 ?? 20.50, p = 0.001). Lower-than-normal Se levels were found mostly in the CFC group (p = 0.001). Conclu-sion: Our results showed significantly lower levels of Se among patients with CFC indicat-ing a relationship between low levels of Se and development of CFC.

Automated summary

This study found that children with complex febrile convulsion (CFC) have lower serum selenium (Se) levels, suggesting a relationship between low Se levels and the development of CFC.