Babies mostly make much of movements that can be mistaken for seizure and may include having quivering chins, trembling in the hands and legs, and jerky movements of the arms. Fortunately, such types of movements are normal, but if you are experiencing movements from your baby that you think can be a seizure, then you have to get time to have a discussion with your pediatrician.
This is an uncommon benign disorder that occurs during the infancy period and early childhood. The attack seems to involve the baby to have a shiver movement that occurs for several seconds on a daily basis with no impairment with his conscious. This rapid shivering occurs in the head, shoulders, and sometimes on the trunk.
The frequency of the shiver can be over 100 per day with intra-individual variability, and it happens spontaneously and without neurological abnormality is found.
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How to Tell If Baby Have Infant Shudder Syndrome?
There are general ways that one can tell if the movements from the infants are normal or seizure and include:
#1. Movements occur at a certain time like when changing diapers because you will not be expecting seizures to occur by then, and the movement can be as a result of not liking the diaper to be changed.
#2. The infantile spasm is more likely to occur when the baby is going to sleep or waking up from sleep as it is an exception for a normal movement and happens at the same time every day.
#3. If your baby is jerking his hand and you can stop it by simply holding it, then it is not a seizure. With the seizure, you are expecting the jerking to keep on even when holding its arm. When the baby is otherwise growing healthy and normal is an indication that he has no seizure. You have to keep in mind that babies with seizures may be fine for some time, but over time one will expect some other unique symptoms and problems, especially when he was experiencing frequent spasms or seizures.
#4. Lastly, movements are generally bilateral on any side of the body. Like symmetric, where you will experience both arms to do the same thing at a time, or rhythmic movements can be one sign of a baby with seizure.
How to Deal with Baby with Infant Shudder Syndrome?
Initially, these shivering attacks were believed as focal seizures due to movements preceded by the right perioral jerks of myoclonic and the shuddering syndromes are not related to epileptic. The EEG is normally advocated in patients, and prolonged video EGG for monitoring is of importance to those with unusual clinical presentation. There are other syndromes that can mimic myoclonic seizures to your baby may be taken to consideration, mainly gratification disorders and benign myoclonus that happen in early infancy.
The infant shudder syndrome is generally not known but it is related to essential tremor as it was initially basing on the observations made. Successful treatment of shudder syndrome by the use of propranolol as the first step agent in treating essential tremors was recorded in 2018.
The EMG patterns during the attack were reported to be similar to essential tremor, but recent research has found that those babies with parents that had a history of shudder syndrome during infancy period or in the family have no relationship to the results. Although cases of shuddering attacks were being reported to be minimal and the conclusion was that incidents might have been underestimated.
Further investigations made are not indicated, and it is a reassurance to parents that it is very crucial due to relatives being frightening as a result of unexpected appearances and the frequency of attacks being high. However, in case of progression come to happen or increase of neurological abnormalities are encountered on examination, then further diagnostic evaluations and cerebral imaging should be included as there are reports of syndromes of shudder attacks.
There are other reasons for your baby to be fussy and can be not getting enough food when breastfed and can be a result of the mother drinking or eating food that disagrees with it like; some dairy products, caffeine, chocolate, certain vegetables and more. Of you are experiencing no changes from your baby after you have stopped taking such kinds of foods, then you can add them back slowly to ensure that the mother’s diet is not being restricted.