A controlled trial of pyridoxine supplementation in children with febrile convulsions.

A total of 107 children who had been hospitalized following a febrile convulsion were enrolled into the trial. By random allocation, 55 children were treated with pyridoxine hydrochloride (20 mgs twice daily) and the remaining 52 children were treated with a placebo until there had been either a further convulsion or a year had passed without recurrence. Eighty children were adequately followed up and of these, 17 had a recurrent febrile convulsion while receiving medication. Recurrences occurrences occurred in 7 of the 38 children receiving pyridoxine and in 10 of the 42 children receiving placebo (X2 = .346, p greater than 0.5). Initial tryptophan load tests had been abnormal in 34 children, and of these, recurrences occurred in 3 of the 17 who received pyridoxine and in 3 of the 17 who received placebo. It has yet to be shown that pyridoxine supplementation protects children from recurrent febrile convulsions.