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

Abstract

Objective: Parents’ lack of knowledge about fever causes fear and incorrect practices. This study aims to investigate the fever knowledge level, concerns, and practices of parents of preschool children. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive, cross-sectional study, conducted between July 2021 and July 2022, a survey was conducted among parents of children aged 6 months to 5 years who did not have a history of febrile seizure and/or chronic disease, either in themselves or their siblings. Results: A total of 386 parents, with a mean age of 33.6 ± 6.38 years and a mean number of children of 1.85 ± 0.9, participated in the study. Approximately one-third of parents started giving antipyretics to their child before the body temperature reached 38°C (32.4%) and/or used them alternately (34.5%). Moreover, approximately two-thirds (67.1%) tended to seek medical help within the first 12 hours. Parents who could not define fever correctly (66.6%) were more likely to start giving antipyretics before the child ’ s body temperature reached 38°C [odds ratio (OR) 2.83 (1.70-4.71), P < .001] and seek medical help within the first 12 hours [OR 1.81 (1.16-2.82), P = .008]. As the number of children or length of parenting increased, parents started giving antipyretics before the body temperature reached 38°C [OR 1.61 (1.26-2.06), P < .001; OR 1.04 (1.01-1.08), P = .048] and used them alternately [OR 1.07 (1.03-1.11), P = .001; OR 1.28 (1.02-1.62), P = .031]. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that a substantial proportion of parents still cannot define fever correctly, and inappropriate antipyretic use is more prevalent among experienced parents with multiple children and/or longer lengths of parenting.