Vertigo Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Vertigo, including details on causes, symptoms, treatment, dizziness.

Diagnoses made in a secondary care "fits, faints, and funny turns" clinic.

Hindley D, Ali A, Robson C

Fairfield General Hospital, Bury, UK. dthindley@doctors.org.uk

AIMS: To investigate the diagnoses made for children referred to a "fits, faints, and funny turns" clinic. METHODS: Prospective study of 380 children referred to a dedicated secondary care clinic over an eight year period. RESULTS: Twenty three per cent of children were given a final diagnosis of one of the childhood epilepsies, with 48% of these having a specific epilepsy syndrome. Syncope was the commonest cause of a non-epileptic event (syncope and reflex anoxic seizures comprised 100/238, 42%) but there were a wide variety of other causes. Fifty three events (14%) were unclassified and managed without a diagnostic label or treatment. CONCLUSIONS: In children with funny turns referred to secondary care, the diagnostic possibilities are numerous; among non-epileptic events, syncopes predominate. The majority do not have epilepsy. Unclassifiable events with no clear epileptic or non-epileptic cause are common and can be safely managed expectantly.

Published 22 February 2006 in Arch Dis Child, 91(3): 214-8.
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