The infant with seizures (excluding neonatal seizures)

Seizures in the infant (1 month–1 year) are a common presentation to the paediatrician and paediatric neurologists. Seizure semiology includes several seizure types. The phenotypes of the seizures are important to recognize to guide investigations and management. The multiple electro-clinical syndromes with many different causes make this a challenging group to investigate and manage. The epileptic encephalopathies are the group with refractory epilepsy with particularly poor prognosis. In contrast to this, are the benign infantile seizures with relatively good prognosis. Magnetic resonance imaging and the availability of detailed genetic investigations, has shed light on these complex group of epilepsies. The therapeutic options include anti-epileptic drugs and ketogenic diet. Surgical treatment is reserved for the few children where focus of the seizure is proved by detailed investigations. This review article focuses on the various infantile epilepsy syndromes, underlying aetiology, an approach to clinical diagnoses, investigations and management, useful for a paediatrician and paediatric neurologists.