DETERMINATION OF CORRELATION BETWEEN ZINC LEVEL IN CEREBROSPINAL FLUID WITH KINDS OF FEBRILE CONVULSION

Febrile convulsion is one of the most common causes of hospitalization of children in pediatric wards. The exact pathogenesis of seizure is not fully understood but involves several factors like genetic predisposition, changes in the levels of neurotransmitters, and some trace elements. The present study was conducted to evaluate the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) zinc (Zn) level in children with types of febrile convulsion. This descriptive-analytical study was carried out from August 2008 to October 2009 to see the status of zinc in CSF of 26 children (6 months to 6 years) with febrile convulsion. All the patients who entered the study had an indication for lumbar puncture. We collected CSF samples from all children and assessed the concentration of zinc using flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS). We compared CSF zinc levels regarding seizure type and sex of children using statistical analysis. Mean CSF zinc level in simple and complex febrile seizures were 2.1081 ± 0.5655 and 1.575 0.2339 [m g/dl), respectively. This difference was statistically significant (P= 0.01). However, there was no relationship between CSF zinc status with sex (P=0.19). These finding revealed that CSF zinc level is higher in simple febrile convulsions than the complex febrile convulsions. CSF zinc concentration (μg/dl) did not differ between boys and girls significantly.