Serum vitamin C levels: a comparison between febrile children with or without seizure

An imbalance has been reported in the oxidant-antioxidant system of infants with febrile convulsion. This study aimed to compare serum vitamin C levels between febrile children with or without seizures. This multicenter case-control study was conducted on febrile infants and children who were referred to the pediatric emergency wards of Mashhad University of Medical Science. The subjects were equally divided into two febrile groups of case (with seizure) and control (without seizures). Visible Spectrophotometer was used to determine the total vitamin C level. In total, 100 febrile children were included in this study. Based on the results, there was no statistically significant difference between the two groups in terms of age, gender, and family history of febrile convulsion (FC) (P>0.05). The mean vitamin C levels in the case and control groups were 42.73±7.2 and 78.59±11.1 µg/l, respectively. There was a significant difference between the groups regarding the vitamin C level (P<0.001). Regression analysis revealed that age (P=0.74), gender (P=0.66), and family history of febrile convulsion (P=0.52) had not any correlation with vitamin C levels. On the other hand, the vitamin C levels was associated with FC (P=0.001). The serum levels of vitamin C in the children with febrile seizure were lower than those in the control group. Thus, the reduced vitamin C levels can be considered as a predisposing factor for FC.