Parents' Knowledge and Management of Fever: "Parents Versus Fever!"

Abstract

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. 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. 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]. 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.