BACKGROUND Febrile convulsion (FC) is the most common neurological disorder in childhood. The aim of this study was to determine the risk factors for recurrence and the development of epilepsy from the demographic data of these patients. METHODS A retrospective study was made of 680 patients with FC who presented to our hospital. Patients with only FC were defined as group 1 and those who developed epilepsy after FC as group 2. Comparisons were made between the 2 groups of the demographic parameters, parental consanguinity, familial history of FCs or epilepsy, criteria for starting prophylactic treatment, response to treatment, risk factors for recurrence, and results of electroencephalogram. RESULTS The study included a total of 680 patients comprising 399 males (59%) and 281 females (41%). A diagnosis of FC was made in 652 cases (95.8%, group 1), and epilepsy was diagnosed in 28 (4.2%, group 2). A positive familial history of FCs was determined statistically significantly higher in group 1. On the other hand, a history of pathological birth and parental consanguinity was found higher in group 2. Prophylactic treatment was administered to 89.3% of group 2 and 40.3% of group 1. CONCLUSIONS Febrile convulsions create fear and panic in the family and are a significant health problem in Turkey. The conclusion that has been reached is that the unnecessary administration of prophylactic treatment could be prevented with education of the families on the subject of fever and correct identification of patients at risk of developing epilepsy.