Increased concentration of prostaglandin E-2 in cerebrospinal fluid of children with febrile convulsions.

Concentrations of prostaglandins (PGs) in the central nervous system are known to increase during and after experimentally induced seizures. In the present study, concentrations of PGE-2 were determined by radioimmunoassay in lumbar cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 17 children shortly after a febrile convulsion. PGE-2 data of these children were compared with those determined in afebrile children and febrile children without convulsions. Duration of storage of CSF samples at -30 degrees C prior to analysis had no influence on PGE-2 levels. Compared with afebrile patients, PGE-2 levels were significantly higher after febrile convulsions. Significantly elevated concentrations of PGE-2 were also found in febrile children without seizures, although the mean PGE-2 level in these patients was somewhat lower than that determined after a febrile convulsion. When body temperature of the patients was compared with their CSF PGE-2 levels, a significant positive correlation was determined between both variables. It is therefore not clear if the increased concentrations of PGE-2 in CSF of patients with febrile convulsions are, at least in part, to be related to increased PG synthesis and release during and after the seizure or are solely to be related to the febrile state of the children.