What parents think of fever

Abstract

Objectives. We aimed to assess knowledge, perception and management of fever by parents. Methods. We conducted a questionnaire survey among 392 parents of children attending locally a paediatric clinic at The Royal Oldham Hospital. The main outcome measures were answers to questions covering a variety of aspects of the knowledge, perception and management of fever by parents. Results. Almost half the parents used a liquid crystal forehead thermometer. Most could not use a glass thermometer. Thirty per cent did not know normal body temperature and would have treated children with a temperature below 38°C. Sixty-four per cent treated fever with both paracetamol and tepid sponging. Most parents awakened children at night for antipyretics. Eighty-one per cent thought that untreated fever was most likely to cause fits or brain damage and 7% thought it could cause death. Conclusion. Parents perceive fever as being dangerous. They have a poor knowledge and measure it inaccurately. Needless consultations and hospital admissions could be avoided by a change in perception.