Table of contents:
- Diagnose when the child has a fever at night
- Relieve fever symptoms in children
- Keep the child's body fluids stable
- Febrifuge
- Wearing loose or more comfortable clothes
- Compress
- When to see a doctor
Fever in children is the reason for most community consultations to pediatricians or general practitioners. The amount is about 30% of the total visit. Fever can occur anytime and anywhere, including near recess or at night. Often, parents should immediately treat a child with a nighttime fever. However, are the steps to deal with fever in children that you have taken the right way?
Diagnose when the child has a fever at night
Often, after finding out that a child has a fever and without looking for other symptoms, parents imagine the worst possibility and want to immediately take their little one to the Emergency Room. Especially when parents find their child has a fever at night.
This results in a high number of pediatric patients in the emergency room with fever. In fact, very few children really need to stay overnight and receive treatment from the hospital. Most children have a fever, which is usually due to the body's process of fighting infection or disease.
You need to know, the high temperature or body temperature when a child has a fever at night is not the only determining factor whether your little one needs a doctor's treatment. Diagnosing a fever in your little one must be based on something other than body temperature, namely the overall physical condition.
Relieve fever symptoms in children
Commonly occurring fevers mostly do not require special treatment. However, you can certainly help relieve the symptoms your little one feels. Here are some ways to help relieve the symptoms of a child with a fever at night.
Keep the child's body fluids stable
When you have a fever, your little one can lose fluids quickly, causing dehydration. When it occurs, dehydration can cause serious complications and worsen fever symptoms. For that, avoid dehydration by continuing to try to encourage children to want to drink water or milk (for those who are still breastfeeding).
Febrifuge
The use of fever-reducing drugs aims to lower body temperature and make children feel more comfortable. The Indonesian Pediatric Association launched that paracetamol is the first line to reduce fever and relieve pain.
If your little one is under 2 months old, you should consult a doctor before giving any type of treatment. This is one of the reasons when children have a fever at night so they should immediately seek help from a pediatrician.
Wearing loose or more comfortable clothes
Choose clothes for your little one with light and soft materials and use a light cloth or blanket. Using excessive clothing can trap body heat and cause body temperature to rise.
Overcoming nighttime fever children can also be done by adjusting the room or room temperature so that it is not too hot or cold.
Compress
Compresses have long been believed to reduce body temperature, which rises when you have a fever. However, avoid using compresses with cold water. Instead, use a cloth soaked in warm water. Then place it in the armpits and fold the groin for 10-15 minutes.
This method can help lower body temperature because heat can come out of the skin's pores through the evaporation process.
When to see a doctor
A definite temperature level can determine considerations for seeing a doctor, but one should still consider age, illness, and other accompanying symptoms of fever.
Call the doctor if your child has a nighttime fever with any of these factors:
- Your little one is under 3 months old with a body temperature of more than 38 degrees Celsius
- Your little one is more than 3 months old with a body temperature of more than 39 degrees Celsius
In addition, if the fever shows a number below 39 degrees Celsius, you need to contact your doctor if accompanied by the following.
- Refusing to drink water
- Diarrhea and vomiting
- Show signs of dehydration (such as less frequent urination, no tears when crying, etc.)
- Feeling pain when urinating
Before taking your little one to the doctor or hospital for fever reasons, you need to check for other symptoms. Because common fever is quite common in children and will go away by itself. You can help relieve fever symptoms at night in a number of ways that you can do at home.
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