ABSTRACT
Status epilepticus (SE) is considered a medical emergency, and is defined by the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) as ‘‘an epileptic condition that occurs whenever a seizure persists for a sufficient length of time or is repeated frequently enough that recovery between attacks does not occur.’’ The concept of how long a seizure lasts prior to being considered SE has changed over time, and continues to be controversial. Initial definitions, such as by Aicardi and Chevrie, suggested a duration of 1 hr; however, with increased understanding of the pathophysiology of seizures from animal models this time period has shortened. Many pediatric epileptologists now propose that 5-10min of continued seizure activity be considered SE.
