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Over‐the‐counter medication use for childhood fever: A cross‐sectional study of Australian parents
Author(s) -
Walsh Anne,
Edwards Helen,
Fraser Jenny
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of paediatrics and child health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.631
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1440-1754
pISSN - 1034-4810
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1754.2007.01161.x
Subject(s) - medicine , over the counter , cross sectional study , lethargy , antipyretic , ibuprofen , pediatrics , family medicine , analgesic , psychiatry , medical prescription , pharmacology , pathology
Aim: To report Australian parents’ medication (paracetamol, ibuprofen and homeopathic) use in childhood fever management. Methods: A cross‐sectional survey of 401 Queensland parents of children aged between 6 months and 5 years recruited through advertising (48.4%), face‐to‐face (26.4%) and snowball (24.4%) methods was conducted. A 17‐item instrument was developed; construct and content validity were determined by an expert panel; and item reliability by test–retest with nine parents. Areas targeted were medication use and influences on and barriers to medication use. Results: Most participants were female, had tertiary education and lived in a major city (mean age 34.6 years). Reducing children’s fever with over‐the‐counter medications was common (91%): 94% of parents reported using paracetamol and 77% reported using ibuprofen. A few (3.7%) used homeopathic remedies. Dosage was determined by weight (86.3%), age (84.3%), temperature (32.4%), illness severity (31.4%) and lethargy (20.9%). Frequency was determined by instructions on the medication label (55.3%), temperature (40.6%) and well‐being (27.7%). Ibuprofen was administered too frequently by 31.5% (four hourly by 22.8%), and paracetamol by 3.8%. Fifty‐two per cent had alternated medications, 65.8% of these for temperatures below 38.5°C. Decisions to alternate were influenced by information from doctors/hospitals (49.5%) and children remaining febrile post‐antipyretic (41.7%). Most parents reported over‐the‐counter medications as potentially harmful (73.2%), citing liver (38.2%), stomach (26.4%) and kidney (18.6%) damage and overdose (35.7%) as concerns. When medications were refused or spat out (44.0%), parents used force (62.4%), different methods (29.5%) or suppositories (20.8%). Conclusions: Most parents used over‐the‐counter medications to reduce fever, often below 38.5°C. The belief that these medications were harmful was overridden by fears of harmful outcomes from fever.