Child nearly fainting - what is it?

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Hello all, glad to join this forum.

My son has a dr appointment in a couple of weeks (immunization) so I will ask the Dr. this question. But I'm wondering also if this happened to any other child.

My 23-month old son has had a few nearly fainting episodes, three to be exact in the last few months. The longest was about 5-6 minutes, we were at the cashier in a store, his face goes white with red spots, I'm asking him "Are you OK? Are you OK?" - I can see he hears me but does not react, as if he is under water or in slow motion. The best way I can explain it is that he comes VERY close to fainting but does not actually faint. At that store, the cashier's supervisor already started intercoming manager because I was asking for a medical help. Then my son "comes back". The other two episodes were shorter but the same scenario.

What could it be? Is it what they call "growing pains"? Is it something common or should we investigate it? My daughter never had this.

Thanks in advance!

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I wouldn't wait any couple of weeks. What is keeping you from calling his m.d. about this?

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That sounds scary! Is he gasping? Breathing normally? I wonder if it could be epilepsy. I think you should try to get into the doctor's office sooner.....

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Sounds like epilepsy to me. Except for the spots.

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I gather it's uncommon.

Well, one important detail is - he had a febral seizure when he was 16 months old. Long story, instead of a "classical" 10-20 min seizure his wouldn't stop for 45 min - until paramedics "relaxed" him. No seizure happened since then, only these three "near-faintings". My dh says he used to have these near- or real faintings when he was growing up but I can't get exact info from him (WHAT AGE WAS HE?) - because he doesn't remember! I think he talks about when he was 7-10-13 years old.

Anyway, on the follow up appt with neurologists after his febral seizure all his brain waves were OK and nothing really has been going on exept these 3 episodes.

Also, he's a big boy - 31 lbs, not fat, but big bones and muscles, I DO hope it's growing pains.

Well, where I live the med situation is a bit more stringent than in the US - the doctors are overtaxed, I would not usually go there without a "real"reason.

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No, he does not gasp, breathes normally, it also looks like just before throwing up - when you reach that climax - you don't really want to talk at that point...

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I think you have a real reason. But, I'm not an md.

Can't you even call the neurologist's office? A nurse could relay the mesaage to the md.

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Yes, I think I should contact the neurologist, too.

thanks, guys.

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Let us know what happens!

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I meant to say welcome to a2k too.

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I just read your post. I'm in total agreement with the others. This is something that you need to address sooner than later. If it turns out to be not much of anything then great. But this sounds like something that definitely warrents a phone call.
Is your child experiencing anything else with this such as fever? Any other changes in behavior or appetite? Some hospitals have nurse hotlines that you can call with simple questions and they can then direct you.
Please keep us updated!

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Yes, please contact a doctor, quickly.

My daughter had growing pains but they never translated to anything like this. And it sounds like your son has some sort of history.

Best of luck.

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Hi everybody,

Thanks for the welcome. I do like this forum.

About my son's usual health/behavior - he's extremely healthy!!! That's what makes it puzzling. If he was a sickling, then it would be more in line...

He's what we call a wrestler - a sturdy strong mischevious boy. He's almost the same size now as his 3.5-year old sister - they are like two tornadoes every day - jumping off the furniture, building big nests out of pillows and blankets (fighting for toys, too, of course).

He eats quite a bit, more than his sister, is curious and energetic - so no signs of changes in behavior/appetite that would make me worry.

And this is the reason that I am confused if this is something to see a Dr. about. He and his sister are being happy helathy toddlers, and these 3 episodes with him seemed to come out of nowhere on the general healthy background.

He has not had any fever since that febral seizure in May, he did have a couple of colds but not with jumping fever.

But I do agree with all of you that I have to talk about it with our family dr (first). He's having his scheduled vaccination shots at the beginning of Jan, so I will talk to her then.

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Allow me to be blunt riviere. Get your kid's ass to the doctor now! This could be serious!

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riviere, at the very least, let a doctor make the determination as to whether this can wait. Call the office, explain what's going on, go from there.

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Again, total agreement with the others....Do not wait until January! As soon as you are done reading this pick up the phone and make the call. This is NOT typical of growing pains. This is not normal for a 23 month old. Do not wait. call a professional right now. I am not a doctor or a nurse but I have worked in the mediacl profession for 20 years...go make that call..........Now

I'm sorry, I don't want to scare you. Its just that if this is something small like an ear infection, then great. But if this is something bigger then early treatment is best!

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Adding my voice in agreement. Call the doctor's office, yes, even on a weekend.

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Are these episodes related to times when he's running a fever (even low-grade)? My daughter experienced a similar episode (complex febrile seizure) resulting in unconsciousness and a stay in the pediatric intensive care unit. I know how scary your experience was. We were advised to aggressively treat all fevers no matter how low-grade. She does not suffer from a seizure disorder, but we never let her suffer with a fever of any kind after that.

What concerns me, is the likelihood that these episodes are not related to whatever caused the original febrile seizure, but are instead indicative of other, potentially dangerous conditions including heart disease or diabetes. Please do not wait until January to have your son evaluated.

Here's some info on fainting (syncope) :

Quote:

Fainting (Syncope)

man with headache, color photoFainting is a sudden loss of consciousness. It most often occurs when the blood pressure is too low (hypotension) and the heart does not pump a normal supply of oxygen to the brain. Typically, a faint lasts only a few seconds or minutes, and then the person regains consciousness.

The medical term for fainting is syncope (SIN koe pee). It is a common problem that affects one million people in the U.S. every year. About one-third of us will faint at least once during our lifetime. A single fainting spell usually is not serious. It may be explained by factors such as stress, grief, overheating, dehydration, exhaustion or illness.

Many causes of fainting, however, are not easy to explain. Some are life-threatening.

The most serious causes of syncope are related to heart damage or electrical system disorders that affect the heart's ability to pump blood efficiently. In some cases, fainting is the only warning sign of an abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmia) that could cause sudden cardiac death. [more]

If you faint suddenly and without explanation, however, contact your physician.

Some people with so-called "fainting disorders" do not actually faint. They may experience recurrent episodes of presyncope (signs such as nausea, dizziness or the feeling that they are about to faint) without losing consciousness.

For most people, syncope is an unusual event. Some individuals, however, have frequent episodes of fainting. Syncope is a serious health problem that may be a symptom of life-threatening disease. Even when the cause is harmless, the results of fainting can be dangerous. People who lose consciousness without warning are at risk of hurting themselves or others. They may be unable to drive a car or hold down a job. Fainting is responsible for 6 percent of all emergency room visits and 3 percent of hospitalizations.

Types of Fainting

* Cardiovascular syncope.
This is the most dangerous type of fainting. It is caused by an abnormal heart rhythm (arrhythmia) or by structural damage to the heart. [more]
* Non-cardiovascular syncope.
There are a variety of non-cardiovascular causes of syncope. These types of syncope often are related to problems with the autonomous nervous system (ANS), which controls "automatic" bodily functions such as heart rate and blood pressure. They may occur even in young, otherwise healthy people with normal heart function. [more]

Profound blood loss or fluid loss (severe diarrhea) may also cause syncope.

Additional Links Here

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JPB,

Sorry to hear that your daughter went through this. Did you mean her seizure itself rendered her unconscious? My son ended up in an ICU, too, but he was rendered and kept unconscious by artificial means (drugs) so they could run all kinds of tests on him looking for a reason.

How old is your daughter? The risk of a febral seizure is supposed to disappear by 4-5 years old.

What they told me was that one can't really control happening of a febral seizure, which is a result of the jump in internal temperature. A nurse friend of mine gave me an example: 2 kids started together with a normal temperature and ended up one with 102 fever and the other with 100. One would think the kid with 102 degrees is more prone to a febral seizure. Yet his fever was growing with a steady pace, increasing by 0.5-1 degree every 10 min. The second kid had an increase of 2 degrees over the same 10 min, and that makes him a better candidate for a febral seizure.

Yet of course the first thing I do is control their temps during their colds/flus.

Quote:

What concerns me, is the likelihood that these episodes are not related to whatever caused the original febrile seizure

I tend to agree. No, he did not run any fevers when he was nearly fainting.

Quote:

Some people with so-called "fainting disorders" do not actually faint. They may experience recurrent episodes of presyncope (signs such as nausea, dizziness or the feeling that they are about to faint) without losing consciousness.

This nails it on the head. That's what my son was having, and my dh says that's what he experienced as a child.

JPB - your article is greatly appreciated. Now I know how to talk with our doctor.

!!!!!!!

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Excuse me, but why aren't you taking your child to the EMERGENCY room when this happens?

My husband had one or 2 near fainting experiencs, then feel out and had a seizure.
When I took him to the ER, turned out he was having ventrical arrythmias.
If nothing had been done, it would have been too long before he just dropped dead on the spot.

Of course this is not an adult, but none of us, including you, are doctors, and can't tell you the seriousness of this. I would think any caring parent would take their child immediately to the ER.

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Child nearly fainting - what is it?

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