TO STUDY SERUM ZINC LEVEL IN CHILDREN WITH FEBRILE SEIZURE.

Background: Febrile seizures are the most common cause of convulsions in children. However, the exact underlying etiology and the pathophysiological mechanisms are yet to be established. Various theories have been put forward regarding the role of trace elements as predisposing factors in causing the convulsions. Among them, Zinc is the most interesting trace element whose role in diarrhea and pneumonia is well proven. Methods: Hospital based Prospective, Analytical, Case – Control study conducted on 100 patients were enrolled in the study out of which 50 were cases which were febrile convulsion patients and 50 were control who were age and weight matched children. Results: Mean zinc level was 69.80±13.13mcg/dl and 80.76±10.24 mcg/dl in study and control groups respectively and this difference was found statistically highly significant (p<0.001). Conclusion- This study establishes a definite relationship between zinc deficiency and febrile seizures thereby substantiating zinc as an important predisposing factor in febrile seizures. Keywords: Zinc, Epilepsy, Deficiency