Should i give fever reducer

Products and services. Thank you for Subscribing Our Housecall e-newsletter will keep you up-to-date on the latest health information. Please try again. Something went wrong on our side, please try again. Show references Bennett JE, et al. Temperature regulation and the pathogenesis of fever. Elsevier; Accessed March 25, Kliegman RM, et al. In: Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics.

Schmitt BD. American Academy of Pediatrics; Ward MA. Fever in infants and children: Pathophysiology and management. Infant fever older than age 90 days. Mayo Clinic; Infant fever age 90 days or younger. Merck Manual Professional Version. When children are feverish, they usually lie around, eat very little and take frequent naps. When you treat a fever with medication, they feel better and become more active, when they should really rest more and stay still while their bodies fight the virus.

While acetaminophen and ibuprofen are usually safe if taken correctly, long-term use of acetaminophen can cause liver toxicity. Ibuprofen can cause stomach upset or increase the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding, if taken in excess, particularly on an empty stomach.

Evidence shows that fever is beneficial to the healing process, triggering the immune response and preventing viruses and bacteria from replicating. Some children consistently seem to respond better to one medication than the other. Each individual illness may also respond better to a particular medication. If you get a feeling that one medication is working better than the other, use that medication.

Many medical providers recommend alternating acetaminophen and ibuprofen for better fever control. Studies suggest there may be a slight improvement in fever control when using both medications; however, there is also an increased chance the child will accidentally be given an overdose of one or both medicines, especially if more than one person is giving the child medication. If you choose to alternate acetaminophen and ibuprofen, alternate them every 4 hours.

For example, give acetaminophen at noon, ibuprofen at 4pm, acetaminophen at 8pm, and so on. If more than one person will be giving medications, keeping a written schedule may help reduce dosing errors.

There is absolutely no evidence that giving acetaminophen and ibuprofen at the same time helps to control the fever. This practice can also lead to significant medication overdoses thus is not safe. Oral dosing recommendations on the packages of medications are most often given in weight or age ranges. This can lead to under-dosing or slight over-dosing. We recommend ibuprofen to be given at 10mg per kilogram of weight about 10mg for every 2 pounds every hours or acetaminophen at 15mg per kilogram of weight every hours.

Acetaminophen can also be given as a rectal suppository, but they are available in a limited selection of doses. Suppositories should not be split to modify the dose because the medication may not be suspended equally throughout the suppository, so one portion may have more medication than another.

Always take the full course of a prescribed antibiotic, even if your fever comes down and you start feeling better.

Aspirin was derived from willow before it was synthesized in the lab and is still sometimes regarded as a natural remedy for fever. Others herbs sometimes used to treat fever include meadowsweet, yarrow, black haw, cramp bark, birch, black cohosh, Indian pipe, and feverfew. Use extreme caution when using any of these herbal remedies, especially for children. Some have naturally occurring derivatives of salicylic acid, which is the component of aspirin that can cause Reye syndrome. Talk to your healthcare provider or your child's pediatrician first.

Looking to avoid getting the flu? Our free guide has everything you need to stay healthy this season. Sign up and get yours today. The pathophysiological basis and consequences of fever.

Crit Care. American Academy of Pediatrics. Fever without fear: Information for Parents. Updated April 22, Updated February 13, Cleveland Clinic.

Fever: Care and treatment. Updated December 31, American College of Cardiology. Sponge bath for a child's fever. Updated September 13, Fever and pain medicine: How much to give your child. Updated April 6,