Pronounced increase in breathing rate in the "hair dryer model" of experimental febrile seizures

In a study using a heated chamber for induction of experimental febrile seizures (eFS) in rat pups, ictal activity was shown to be precipitated by a respiratory alkalosis (Schuchmann et al., 2006). In sharp contrast to this, in a recent review Dubé et al., (2007) suggest that the respiratory alkalosis is model specific, and that no increase in respiratory rate is observed in the widely used "hair dryer model" of eFS. The data in the present work, based on well-established techniques for measuring respiratory rates in rat pups, show a pronounced increase in the "hair dryer model" with values that are slightly higher than those recorded in the heated chamber model. Hence, a temperature-evoked increase in respiration is a common feature of these two models of eFS.