Check your Fever Facts!

Fever is one of the most common reasons that parents seek medical attention for their children. Parental concerns arise in part because of the belief that fever is a disease rather than a symptom or sign of illness. Twenty years ago, Barton Schmitt, MD, found that parents had numerous misconceptions about fever. These unrealistic concerns were termed "fever phobia."
In a recent study from the Department of Pediatrics out of John Hopkins’ Bay New Medical Center, a total of 340 caregivers were interviewed. Fifty-six percent of caregivers were very worried about the potential harm of fever in their children, 44% considered a temperature of 102 degrees F to be a "high" fever, and 7% thought that a temperature could rise to 110 degrees F if left untreated. Ninety-one percent of caregivers believed that a fever could cause harmful effects; 21% listed brain damage, and 14% listed death. Strikingly, 52% of caregivers said that they would check their child's temperature once an hour when their child had a fever, 25% gave antipyretics for temperatures less than 100 degrees F, and 85% would awaken their child to give antipyretics. Fourteen percent of caregivers gave acetaminophen, and 44% gave ibuprofen at too frequent dosing intervals.
In a study looking at how 161 pediatricians treat children's fevers, researchers found that half tell parents to give both ibuprofen and acetaminophen in alternating doses. According to Dr. Clara E. Mayoral and her colleagues at Winthrop University Hospital in Mineola, New York, this strategy could put children at greater risk from the drugs' side effects, which include liver damage. “Parents need to understand that fever is not necessarily a bad thing,” Dr. Mayoral said. “It’s the body’s response to infection. Treating the fever does not treat the underlying cause.” Their report is published in the May issue of Pediatrics. Of the 73% of caregivers who said that they sponged their child to treat a fever, 24% sponged at temperatures less than 100 degrees F; 18% used alcohol. Forty-six percent of caregivers listed doctors as their primary resource for information about fever. Caregivers who stated that they were very worried about fever were more likely in the past to have had a child who was evaluated for a fever, to have had blood work performed on their child during a febrile illness, and to have perceived their doctors to be very worried about fever. Compared with 20 years ago, more caregivers listed seizure as a potential harm of fever, woke their children and checked temperatures more often during febrile illnesses, and gave antipyretics or initiated sponging more frequently for possible normal temperatures. Fever phobia persists.
Tylenol is not in our house. The body heals itself with no interference, and the increased temperature is a process to destroy the bacteria. Chiropractic care allows the immune system to function at 100% thus allowing the body’s defense to work properly. Reducing the fever with drugs allows the bacteria to continue to grow. As I tell each patient, it is your call and decision, just make sure chiropractic care is a part of that decision.

For additional information, please call Northgate Chiropractic at
(206) 367-2224.