Parental Confidence in Relation to Antipyretic Use, Warning Signs, Symptoms and Well-Being in Fever Management—Results from an App-Based Registry

Abstract

Parents’ confidence regarding their children’s fever is a key factor in its management and there is still unnecessary anxiety and associated antipyretic overuse. The FeverApp application collects naturalistic real-time data on febrile infections and educates parents on fever management. Logistic regression examined the associations between (1) parental confidence and (2) antipyretics use with fever relevant parameters. First entry data of 3721 children (mean age 21 months; SD 22.97) was assessed. A total of 58.0% of parents felt confident upon first fever documentation. Warning signs [OR = 0.49, 95% CI: 0.40–0.61], dehydration [OR = 0.65, 95% CI: 0.52–0.81], fever [OR = 0.67, 95% CI: 0.57–0.80] and having a female child [OR = 0.77, 95% CI: 0.66–0.90] had the highest negative association with parental confidence. Antipyretics were used initially in 14.7% of children. Fever had the highest positive [OR = 2.58, 95% CI: 1.89–3.50] and well-being the highest negative association with antipyretic use [OR = 0.37, 95% CI: 0.22–0.63). In the first entry data, parental confidence was related to children’s health condition in a reasonable medical manner. The use of antipyretics was mostly associated with febrile temperature, but also low well-being. Thus, associations were partly in accordance with recent guidelines.

Parents’ Knowledge and Management of Fever: “Parents Versus Fever!”

“…Pediatric fever is much more significant than just an increase in body temperature. 8 , 15 As parents who prioritize the well-being of their children, they make every effort to reduce fever. 15 , 19 However, these endeavors often instill fear and anxiety, particularly among parents with lower education levels and young mothers.…”

“… 8 , 15 As parents who prioritize the well-being of their children, they make every effort to reduce fever. 15 , 19 However, these endeavors often instill fear and anxiety, particularly among parents with lower education levels and young mothers. 30 This leads them to take potentially harmful interventions to reduce fever 3 , 14 because most parents are not even aware that antipyretics have harmful effects on the illness process and high doses can lead to toxicity.…”

“… 3 , 14 As a result, parents unnecessarily treat fever by trying to reduce it even at low temperatures to increase their sense of security and avoid the possible negative effects of fever. 2 , 6 , 15 However, it is not always necessary to reduce fever in previously healthy children. It is recommended to use antipyretics only to increase the comfort of the child.…”