Home management of fever in children: Rational or ritual?

Fever is extremely common in childhood. Parents have been shown to have unr ealistic fears, resulting in inappropriate management of fever in their chi ldren. This study was conducted to survey parents about their knowledge con cerning home management of fever in children in their care. Parents of 560 febrile children were randomly recruited and interviewed in the waiting are as of the outpatient clinics or emergency room in four hospitals in Riyadh city using a standard questionnaire. Most of the interviewees were mothers, aged within 20-39 years, Although more than one-half of fathers and one-th ird of mothers in the study were well educated, most were misinformed about recognition and definition of fever. Most parents had poor knowledge regar ding minimum temperatures for administering correct doses of antipyretic dr ugs or for sponging/bathing with water of the correct temperature. Most par ents demonstrated a poor understanding of the appropriate frequency for che cking the child's temperature and administering antipyretics, Only one-thir d of parents indicated a reasonable educational imprint by health-care prov iders. Considerable efforts will be required to educate parents about fever and its management.