Introduction: Febrile seizures can be classified as simple and complex type, the latter being characterized by increased risk of recurrence of febrile seizures itself and progression to epilepsy. The present study was conducted to compare the clinical characteristics of simple and complex febrile seizures in Korea.

Methods: Between January 2009 to December 2012, 545 children were diagnosed as febrile seizures. Their medical records were retrospectively reviewed for comparison between simple and complex febrile seizures.

Results: The ratio of male and female was 1.74:1. The age was distributed from 3 months to 8 years. Simple febrile seizures were 431 cases, four-fold larger than complex febrile seizures (114 cases). The causes of their febrile illness were upper airway infection (56%), pneumonia (4.2%), otitis media (4.2%), and acute gastroenteritis (3.9%). Family history of epilepsy was more frequent (p<0.05) in children with complex febrile seizures (3/114, 2.6%) compared to simple types (7/431, 1.6%) although no significant differences were found between the two types of febrile seizures in most clinical parameters such gender, age, and the cause of febrile illness.

Conclusion: Although febrile seizures is known as benign, which does not leave any sequelae in most cases, some view it as a basic type of epilepsy caused by fever. An understanding of the natural history and prognosis will enable the physician to reassure the families and provide appropriate counseling and management while avoiding unnecessary diagnostic and therapeutic intervention.