Guest guest Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Trish, My son is 41/2 and he has had these startles since he was a baby. They are mostly triggered by a fright or things he is unsure of but they are not seizures. Touch wood he doesn't suffer with them and doesn't display any other signs when he has these startles. It just seems to be one of the baby reflexes he hasn't lost like ATNR reflex. and 41/2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Trish, What you describe sounds just like Sam when he was a baby. Sam has been on Tegretol since he was 1. He still has abnormal activity on his EEG, but seldom any outward sign of seizures. Christie, mom to Sam (12 yrs old, bilateral perisylvian PMG) Re: Startles " What he does is when you get too close to his face or if something happens unexpected, he starts blinking repeatedly and looks kind of shocked. " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Trish, My son is nearly 4 and he still has a very exagerated startle reflex. He tenses, throws his arms up, arches his torso, flings his head back, and often will cry out. It's most often triggered by a loud, unexpected noise, though an unexpected sensation (cat licks his foot) or smells even can trigger them. In they are not seizures at all--just an exagerated retained infant reflex. If you are concerned, you might try to video tape some and show those to your doctor. Also, if you are working with therapists, you might ask their opinions--they see a lot of kids and may have some insight as to what you are seeing there. , mom of boys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 17, 2004 Report Share Posted February 17, 2004 Trish, I think we are talking about two different types of " startles " . The kind Nichole and I am talking about (with reference to my son Max who is 3 1/2) is not influenced by any outside activity. Max's startles can occur anywhere, anytime, in any position. They are clearly something that is happening in the brain. For Max his arms fly out, sometimes legs too and it looks like someone just flipped the switch off for a moment. Sometimes his head goes to the side. Afterwards he will either smile, look confused for 5-15 seconds, or go " post ictal blah " . He often will moan/fuss as one is approaching and then when he has one he might smile like his brain finally released all that tension. Max's " starles " are 1-3 second seizures. They never show up on an EEG per say but his neuro also concludes they are seizures. But they look like a startle and that is the best way to describe them. Hope this helps, Joanie (Max 3 1/2) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 18, 2004 Report Share Posted February 18, 2004 Trish and , This sounds very much like the sort of startles Finlay gets. They are triggered by unexpected movement or noise or sometimes when he is lying on his back. It used to happen much more frequently when he was under 2 years old. They now only occur when something startles him unexpectedly or when he is feverish. We do not believe what Finlay has are seizures. Annelies and Finlay 2 ½ Re: Re: Startles Trish, My son is 41/2 and he has had these startles since he was a baby. They are mostly triggered by a fright or things he is unsure of but they are not seizures. Touch wood he doesn't suffer with them and doesn't display any other signs when he has these startles. It just seems to be one of the baby reflexes he hasn't lost like ATNR reflex. and 41/2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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