How to Treat Fevers In Children

Fevers can put you at risk for dehydration, and at high enough temperatures, brain damage or even death. For children, the risk is especially high; their bodies cannot handle high temperatures as well as adults can. Acting quickly to reduce a fever in your child is essential, and seeking medical care can make all the difference when the fever spikes too high. To save yourself a trip to the emergency room, try bringing your child's temperature down as fast as you can, as soon as you notice the fever. Here is how to treat fevers in children:

Instructions

1. Know What Temperatures Are Risky

   The threshold for a temperature in a child is lower than that for adults, and even lower for toddlers and infants. These are the temperates to look out for, based on age range:

   In Newborns & Infants (Under 12 Months): 100.3 rectally

   If your newborn or infant develops a fever, monitor it closely. The second it hits 100.3 or higher, head straight to the nearest emergency room. Don't even bother calling the pediatrician first; they will tell you to go right to the hospital.

   In Toddlers (Under 2-3 Years): 102.0 rectally, orally, or by ear

   In toddlers, 102 even is the number to start worrying about. If you can't bring the fever down with Children's Tylenol or Motrin, contact your child's pediatrician immediately. If the pediatrician isn't available or it's after hours, you may want to head to the hospital if the fever shows no signs of dropping within an hour of developing.

   In Children (Over 2-3 Years): 104.0 rectally, orally, or by ear

   In older children, the limit is 104 even, similar to adults. Once your child hits that number, give your pediatrician a call. They may want you to come in immediately, or they may direct you to urgent care. If your pediatrician isn't available and you can't reach anyone on the doctor's emergency after-hours line, you may want to consider heading to urgent care or the ER if the fever doesn't come down with treatment after a couple of hours.

   In any children, if a fever is close to the threshold for their age group, or refuses to drop more than a few points even after treatment for a few hours, you may want to head to the hospital to find out what it causing the high fever, and to see if they have better luck bringing the fever back down.

2. Give Your Child Fever-Reducing Medication

   Both ibuprofen (Infant's and Children's Motrin) and acetaminophen (Infant's and Children's Tylenol) are very effective at reducing fevers temporarily. Dosages are indicated on the bottles, or you can call your doctor for instructions - always take your doctor's advice over the bottle's dosing chart. Both can be administered every 6 hours, although some doctors suggest switching between Motrin and Tylenol every 4 hours. While the effectiveness of this method is arguable, at the very least, it allows you to dose more often when a fever is proving to be troublesome, so it may be more beneficial to switch between the two rather than sticking to one. The exceptions are if your child is allergic or sensitive to one of the medications, or if one seems to work while the other doesn't.

   Both medications are available in children's and infant's form at any pharmacy. Infants under the age of 3 months should not be given either medication without your pediatrician's prior approval.

3. Apply a Cool Compress

   You can create a compress using a clean, cotton washcloth and dampening it using cold water. Then, gently rub the compress all over your child's body. Because the fever will make your child feel cold and even shiver, they will likely protest this, but insist on doing it. Applying a compress can help drop a fever up to 2 whole degrees when done correctly and continuously. You can keep your child clothed while doing this, and roll up or pull down clothing to reach the spots you want to apply the compress to, which can help reduce the shivering and discomfort.

4. Give Your Child a Bath

   Your child probably won't like this one, either, but a lukewarm bath is very effective for treating a fever in children. A warm bath will also help ease the discomfort and aching that goes along with fevers. Don't leave your child in the bath for more than 10 minutes, or they may shiver too much, which will cause them ever more discomfort. Immediately afterwards, dry them off with a warm towel and clothe them again.

Tips & Warnings

• If you can't bring the fever down, or it spikes to high, head to the emergency room immediately. High fevers can cause severe dehydration, brain damage, and death, especially in toddlers and babies.

• Give your child lots of liquids while they are battling the fever. Water is good, but Pedialite will replace the electrolytes that your child loses while feverish. Too much Pedialite can cause harm to your child, though, so contact your doctor to see how much you should give him or her.

• Try and encourage your child to eat. Eating will give your child the energy he or she needs to fight off the infection that is fighting the fever. If they haven't thrown up, you can feed them whatever they will eat. If they are getting sick, stick to things that are easy on the stomach, like crackers and soup. In infants, try feeding soy formula or Pedialite instead of milk or breastmilk, which will upset their tummy further. Contact your doctor for help.

• NEVER try to "sweat out a fever" in a child, especially an infant or newborn. This can cause serious damage, raise the fever too high, and dehydrate the child or even kill them.