Dr Chris's Fever Control plan - what you should do if your child has a fever.

What every parent should know - the five C's to control fever in your child.

Fever Control in Kids
Why not print this out and pin it on your fridge or in your child's bedroom?

Here is my Five 'C's plan for fever control in children. Most mothers do the wrong thing when their child has a fever, they cover them with blankets and make them sweat the fever out of them. This is very dangerous as the child can develop a 'Febrile Convulsion' or fever fit, which is frightening for the mother to witness - an epileptic attack caused by the high temperature. So the correct way to manage a child with a temperature is my 'Five 'C's:

1. Cool room - open a window, turn the heating OFF. Put an electric cooling fan ON.

2. Cool sponge - sponge your child's head, neck and arms with a sponge or cloth soaked in cool water. If the child is prone to febrile convulsions, cool-sponging the whole body will be neccessary to get the body temperature right down.

3. Cool drinks - plenty of cool or iced drinks, ice cream or ice lollies. Avoid fizzy drinks as these may cause vomiting if the child is feeling nauseated.

4. Cool bedding - probably one sheet with maybe a light blanket. The child can kick these off if uncomfortable. No duvets and no electric blankets!

5. Calpol - not aspirin. Use paracetamol syrup following the doseage instructions on the bottle for your child's age group.

If you want to add another 'C' it could be 'Call' the doctor - if your childs temperature does not come down within 12 hours of following these instructions. Never give aspirin to any child under the age of 12 years as it may cause a rare serious disorder called Reye's syndrome!

If your child has been given antibiotics by your doctor, do make sure that they finish the complete course, most antibiotics should be taken for a period of 5 days.

This content was created on Sat 5 August 2006

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