Urgent Pediatric Seizure Code: Results and limitations after its 1st year of implementation
María Suárez-Bustamante Huélamo1, Marta Lloret Carnicero1, Guillermo Ruiz Ocaña2, Eva Simón Carro3, Eva Arias Vivas2, Andrea Nicolás Berenguer3, Víctor Soto Insuga4, Adrián García Ron3, José Antonio Alonso-Cadenas1,5
Affiliation of the authors
1Servicio de Urgencias, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain. 2Servicio de Pediatría, Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Madrid, Spain. 3Servicio de Pediatría, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain. 4Sección de Neurología, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain. 5Fundación para la Investigación Biomédica Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain.
Suárez-Bustamante Huélamo M, Lloret Carnicero M, Ruiz Ocaña G, Simón Carro E, Arias Vivas E, Nicolás Berenguer A, et al. Urgent Pediatric Seizure Code: Results and limitations after its 1st year of implementation. Emergencias. 2026;38:455-60
Summary
Objectives.
To evaluate the appropriateness of activations of the Urgent Pediatric Seizure Code (UPSC) in 2 pediatric emergency departments after its 1st year of implementation and analyze compliance with its main quality indicators.
Methods.
We conducted a bicenter, descriptive, retrospective study including patients < 16 years in whom the UPSC was activated between November 2023 and November 2024.
Results.
Of the 215 UPSC activations, 176 episodes (81.9%) were appropriately activated (recommended standard, 85%). The most common reason for activation was seizure clusters, which influenced compliance with several indicators. The indicator for early treatment with an antiseizure drug showed a compliance rate of 10.0%, while the diagnostic indicator [performance of video electroencephalogram (vEEG) within the first 24 hours] reached 95.5%. Overall, 33.0% of patients were discharged early within less than 24 hours.
Conclusions.
After 1 year of UPSC implementation, most activations in pediatric patients were appropriate. Early vEEG performance was excellent, whereas early treatment and discharge within 24 hours were insufficient. These findings highlight the need to adapt the protocol to the pediatric setting.
