Infantile convulsion is divided into two types of acute infantile convulsion and chronic infantile convulsion according to the course, onset, the fact that whether there is concurrent fever or not and the severity of coma and clonic convulsion. Acute infantile convulsion manifests shorter history, sudden onset, concurrent high fever in most cases, severe coma and clonic convulsion. For the patients with attack by exogenous pathogenic wind, cough and nasal discharge are commonly accompanied; for the patients with pathogenic summer-heat mostly seen in midsummer, repeated clonic convulsion may occur; in mild cases, nausea, vomiting, dysphoria and lethargy appear while in severe cases, deep coma and dysphoria with restlessness, even critical symptoms like dyspnea may occur.

Infantile convulsion due to dampness, heat and epidemic pathogen and that due to phlegm and improper diet, are common in summer and autumn, often caused by epidemic pathogen, unhygienic and poisonous diet invading the stomach and intestine. The patient has the history of improper intake of food. The disease has abrupt onset and symptoms of dysfunction in ascending of the spleen and descending of the stomach. Simultaneously, clonic convulsion occurs repeatedly, and is accompanied by abdominal pain, diarrhea and bloody stool with pus, etc.

Infantile convulsion due to fright and terror often has the history of being frightened, and no concurrent fever in most cases, clinically marked by alternate bluish and red complexion of infantile patients and restlessness. Chronic infantile convulsion has a longer history, slow onset, no concurrent symptoms of fever in most cases, relatively short duration of coma and clonic convulsion, and only occasional involuntary movement of limbs.

The commonly-seen symptoms of infantile convulsion due to asthenia of the spleen and stomach include listlessness, sleep with open eyes, poor appetite, loose stools, forceless and intermittent clonic convulsion; the commonly-encountered symptoms of infantile convulsion due to yang deficiency of the spleen and kidney include listlessness, lethargy with open eyes, pale complexion, cold limbs and involuntary movement of limbs; the commonly-seen symptoms of infantile convulsion due to yin deficiency of the liver and kidney include low fever, asthenic dysphoria, feverish palms and soles, spasm or rigidity of limbs, alternate mild and severe clonic convulsion, deep red tongue with a little saliva.