Many inexperienced or overzealous parents immediately seek the use of antipyretics when the thermometer indicates more than 37 ° C in their children. However, these remedies in eliminating this symptom often make parents unconcerned and cause them to neglect the cause of this physical reaction.
According to a publication by the American Academy of Pediatrics in the Pediatrics Journal of Pediatrics, indiscriminate use of antipyretics in children is common and improper, as temperature increases in more than 60% of cases are a sign of combating changes in the body such as the presence of microorganisms, thus being natural and beneficial.
Parents who are concerned about severe fever-related outcomes, such as seizures, should know that they occur in only 2% of cases and are not correlated with the increase in body temperature, but rather with how quickly this increase occurs.
Febrile seizures occur in children up to two years of age who have a family predisposition. When it occurs, the child falls, makes sudden movements of arms and legs, saliva, looks away from the eyes and mouth, and sometimes urine and defecation. In such cases, the search for medical attention should be immediate.
How does fever occur?
When a bacterium or virus enters the body and is recognized as an invader, it leads to the production of substances known as inflammatory mediators, which cause local vasodilation, peripheral vessel constriction, pore closure, and muscle twitching by boosting the immune activity. and reducing the reproduction of the invading microorganism.
When to be alert to increased body temperature in children
Because the body has intense activity in childhood to promote growth, it is natural for children to have a higher temperature than adults. Only parents of newborns, children with heart or lung problems, or children whose symptoms persist for two days should seek immediate help in the event of a temperature increase.
How to interpret the thermometer and identify childhood fever
- Up to 37.2 degrees: Normal temperature for children;
- Between 37.2 and 37.8 degrees: Febrile state. One should only check from time to time if there is no increase in this temperature;
- Above 37.8 degrees: Fever. Do not give antipyretics immediately. Follow home recipes and constantly check the temperature. If the symptom accompanies any discomfort, doctor the child. If fever persists, seek medical attention.
Homemade recipes without allied contraindications to fight childhood fever
- Make warm water compresses on the child's forehead;
- Give plenty of water, juice, teas or milk;
- Dress the child in light clothing;
- Take a warm bath with water below the child's fever temperature.
When to medicate the feverish child
Experts recommend that parents give an antipyretic if they need to relieve some discomfort of the child, such as intense shivering, for example, and even if the fever subsides, seek the help of a doctor. • It is not appropriate for the doctor to examine a person with a high fever as it makes evaluation difficult. Giving the medicine and thinking it is all right is not indicated either. Doesn't medicating mean treating? Warns Cid Pinheiro, head of the pediatrics department at São Luiz Hospital in São Paulo.
If the child vomits the medication, do not repeat the dose immediately, but wait for at least an hour to see if any remedy has acted to reduce the temperature.
It is important to understand that giving children medicine is a huge responsibility, so guardians should be careful not to hesitate to get help from a doctor, as fever itself is not a disease, but the problems that cause it should be observed and treated by a healthcare professional.
- Children and adolescents
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