A seizure or fit occurring in children, aged six months to six years, who has a high temperature due to an acute illness such as a viral infection, during which the limbs twitch and they may lose consciousness. The condition is common, with one child in 20 experiencing one or more febrile convulsions. Treatment is by placing the child in the recovery position, sponging the body with tepid water, administering paracetamol or ibuprofen and attending to the underlying cause. If the child is otherwise unwell, a doctor may wish to undertake tests to rule out more serious illness, such as MENINGITIS. Nearly all children who have had this condition come to no harm but in a few, especially when the features of the convulsion are unusual (long-lasting, unilateral, fever not high, for example) the febrile convulsion turns out to be the first sign that they will eventually develop EPILEPSY.