Fever in Children
Mostly children face common health problems like cough, cold and fever. When child suffers from fever, it disturbs the regular routine of child as well as parents. Proper management of fever is necessary to avoid other complications.
Always measure the temperature in mouth or rectum by using thermometer. For measuring temperature in rectum, use rectal thermometer. When the temperature of the body increases more than 38 oC or 41 oF, then it is dangerous for child's health.
Precautions while measuring fever
- Mark the rectal thermometer. Do not use it for mouth measurement
- Clean the thermometer in luke warm soap water before using
- Always measure the oral temperature after the period of half an hour when you take hot or cold drinks
- Do not wrap many cloths around your child before measuring temperature
- Immediately after bath do not measure the temperature
- After measuring temperature clean the thermometer with lukewarm soap water
Care
- If the body temperature is under control, then use home remedies to minimize the temperature to normal
- Measure temperature regularly
- Bathe your child with 30 oC temperature water
- Do not wrap your child in wet cloth
- Don't use ice water for bath, otherwise it will increase body temperature
- Never give aspirin to lower the fever
- Sponging is good to decrease the temperature. If the reason of fever is infection, then give anti-infection drug along with sponging
- Do not uses alcohol for reducing temperature, because fumes cause harmful effect on the body
- If temperature of your child is more than 38 oC, then take him/her to the doctor
Causes of fever in children
- Infection of bacteria
- Infection of virus
- Sides effects of chemical drugs
- Increase in heat
- Over bundling of cloths in newborn causes fever. Newborn cannot immediately adjust temperature as compared to older kids.
Symptoms shown by the children
- Child breathes rapidly compared to normal breathing
- Body becomes hot or warm
- Change in the eating and sleeping habit
- Does not show interest in playing or toys
- Not responding to the parents or other members
- Irritation
- Nervous
- Child below age of 2-3 years cries frequently
- Body aches
- Do not like to eat anything
Treatment
- Sponging
- Fever causes dehydration, therefore provide him/her fruit juices which he/she likes
- Child avoids eating, but force him/her to eat anything of his/her interest
- Give milk to drink
- Regularly give him/her water, it helps in lowering the body temperature
- If temperature of the child is not under control, then start treatment under guidance of specialist
- Rest is best in fever. Do not send your child to school
- Children more than 10-11 years can have soups and gelatin
Fever is very common in children; mostly it is caused by infection. For parents, to cure and control fever is very important.
