How to Recognize a Petit Mal Seizure

A petit mal seizure, also known as an absence seizure, is often difficult to detect in children. They usually only last a few seconds, but the child could have hundreds of episodes a day. The child normally doesn't have tremors like an epileptic seizure, but is unconscious during the episode. Often the condition goes undetected until the child begins having difficulty in school.

Instructions

• 1

  Identify if your child has staring spells without movement. Often it is the child's teacher who first notices this condition.

• 2

  Look closely at the child's face for discernible signs of a petit mal seizure. Symptoms may include fluttering eyelids, lip smacking or chewing.

• 3

  Notice if your child stops speaking in mid-sentence, is clumsy or often stops walking for no apparent reason.

• 4

  Check if your child is unconscious or merely "spacing out" by putting your hand on the child's shoulder, saying the child's name or moving your hand back and forth in front of the child's face. A child having a petit mal seizure is unconscious and will not respond.

• 5

  Illicit help from the school counselor who may have had experience identifying other children with this condition. Sometimes it's easier to notice staring episodes when the child is at school. Have the teacher or counselor check if the child responds during staring episodes.

• 6

  Schedule an appointment with your child's pediatrician to pursue a formal diagnosis. In some cases, the seizures may need to be controlled with medication.