Pediatric Seizure Movement Bed Alarm
Pediatric Seizure Movement Bed Alarm
Nocturnal seizure and Sudden unexplained death in epilepsy patients (SUDEP) are major
 concerns for parents and creates anxiety and poor sleep conditions for many families dealing
 with epilepsy. An accurate and reliable system for alerting parents to ongoing seizure
 activity could make a substantial impact in quality of life and possibly reduce the mortality
 of epilepsy. No previous studies in the pediatric population have been performed to evaluate
 this type of monitoring for seizure activity. This is one of the most common questions
 parents ask in clinic, "Are there any alarms that can tell me when my child is having a
 seizure at night?" Currently the answer is no. This study has the capability to give us data
 that may change this answer to yes.
For parents of children with epilepsy, seizures occurring in sleep are a major concern. This
 frequently leads to many nights of lost sleep for parents and also to unfavorable sleeping
 arrangements, especially for older children and adolescents. Sudden unexplained death in
 epilepsy patients (SUDEP) is also a major concern for both parents and neurology
 practitioners. Patients with epilepsy have increased risk of sudden unexplained death
 compared to the rest of the population. The risk of sudden death in epilepsy is estimated at
 24 times the risk of the general population. Specific risk factors for sudden death have been
 evaluated and the most frequently reported risk factors include: nocturnal seizures, being in
 bed, and history of generalized tonic -clonic seizures. Interestingly, one case-control study
 observed a decreased risk of SUDEP with nighttime monitoring or supervision which raises the
 possibility that some cases of SUDEP may be preventable if another person is able to give
 assistance. This finding may indicate that some of these deaths may be preventable if a
 caregiver could be alerted to seizure activity. Use of "baby monitors", apnea monitors and
 pulse oximeters to monitor their children at night has been attempted by families; however,
 these devices are not specific to seizure activity and in the case of apnea monitors and
 pulse oximeters have frequent false alarms leading to further anxiety and sleep disturbance
 for families. Therefore, there is a need for a product that can reliably detect seizure
 activity without such frequent false positives as to interfere with sleep and functional
 life.
Inclusion Criteria:

 -  epilepsy

 Exclusion Criteria:

 -  non-epileptic