Q: My 10 years old child fell unconscious for a few minutes last week when she was being given a bath by her aunt. The water temperature was as usual. My daughter started feeling uneasy and breathless when water was poured on her head. We immediately took her to a doctor who asked us to get her ECG done and also prescribed carbamazepine (Tegritol). I surfed the Internet and found that this medicine has a lot of side effects. Should I stop giving this medicine to my daughter?

A:Bathing, even at a normal temperature can rarely cause some neurological events including: bathing epilepsy; infantile syncope, hyperekplexia, alternating hemiplegia of childhood, pain syndromes. I feel that your child probably had a fainting spell rather than a seizure(infantile syncope). I would be reluctant to start medicines after only one event. In the meanwhile, avoid pouring water from a height. You could gently mop him with a wet towel before giving him a bath. I'm sure that you would be using water at a comfortable temperature.