How Important Is Getting an Accurate Temperature?

We use an ear thermometer since our oldest can't do the oral yet and isn't a huge fan of the rectal (although we've done that too). Our ped was never really concerned with the numbers (esp since we haven't had issues with febrile seizures). I called once because our kiddo was running a fever of 104-something, and I was worried about "how high is too high?". He actually told me NOT to worry about the actual "number." What he looks for is any change in behavior. She was acting fairly normal despite the high fever, so he told us just to monitor it. Length of fever (over several days) or change in behavior is when they want to examine her.

But, as with everything dealing with kids, I guess it's what YOU are comfortable with for your kids. :)

I don't even take the temperature. Either they are hot or they're not. I treat them according to symtoms and behaviour. If the fever is making them uncomfortable I give a fever reducer, if they are comfortable I let the fever run its course and do its job. Our doc has never asked what the temp was, only if there has been fever. Fortunately my kids have never been seriously ill, despite the fact that I have always let them be exposed to everything. They had all of the usual childhood diseases (fifths, hand, foot and mouth, chicken pox, baby measles etc), but they haven't been very sick with them.

I just found our one working thermometer last week. Haven't seen it in years. I can tell with my hand on a child's forehead whether or not he or she has a fever. I suppose for something that looks like a high fever, knowing how high is important but fortunately, none of my kids has been really sick in years. I think it's important to be precise for infants but for otherwise healthy kids, most of the time, a fever is a fever. If you do give an actual number, just include that you took it on the forehead. From what I recall from when my kids were very little they usually ask you that anyway.

if you use the same thermometer all the time, the accuracy is less important so long as you have a baseline read for everyone. if your baby is 99 normally with this thermometer, you'll know that and not freak out if it reads 99.5, which might actually be unusually high for you.
i think too much emphasis gets put on temperatures. i almost never run a temp, even when i'm prostrate on the couch.
khairete
S.

Like someone else posted -- the actual temperature could really make a difference between the doctor's office saying "treat at home," "bring him in today" and "get him to the hospital, now." It's pretty serious to us -- but our pediatrician has written articles about fever in kids and has always been a stickler for wanting accurate readings. (She wouldn't be keen on the idea of "I can tell by feeling the forehead!" You can't tell by touch if it's 100 or 102 or 105 that way, and there is a huge difference in a kid -- the latter would be cause for serious and immediate intervention.) When our girl was little we did use rectal temps; our doctor always said they are really, truly the most accurate in infants and toddlers and are NOT "traumatic" as someone posted -- not if your child is used to it and the parent does not get all wound up and upset about doing it. I think most parents just feel like it's invasive, and it is, but doctors wouldn't hesitate to do it. As kids get older, oral is the way to go. I don't like the forehead readers, myself, as I feel they are not going to give me a real temperature, only some "range" indicated by a muddy color I can't really determine. So...for little ones, rectal, done with the right thermometer, KY jelly and thermometer covers, and plenty of distraction for the little one during the process; and for older kids, a good digital oral thermometer (with covers, again) and pratice at keeping it at the "root" of the tongue.

Ear thermometers -- had one, she hated the feel of it and wiggled, and thus I never trusted the readings. Some parents have very good ones that cost a lot and those are supposedly OK, but our experience with one was pretty poor.

It's important to us. Our son has febrile seizures that are triggered with any temp over 102

Anything under 100.5, we give him IB Profin and let him play. Anything over that we double up on the Tylenol and Ib Profin (Per doctor's recommendation) and keep a very very close eye on him. Usually if his fever is that high though he will just sleep all day until he eventually has a seizure and then it's more sleeping.

I think it's very important to get an accurate read if they're REALLY sick. Could be the difference in an emergency room visit or a lukewarm bath. Not a big deal if they're just dealing with an everyday minor illness.

If your kids are like mine, they are too young to take it orally and taking it rectally is traumatic. We just switched to a forehead scanning thermometer just to determine if there is a fever and if its high grade or low grade. Its necessary to be accurate if for example you are under Dr.s orders to get urine tested with any fever over 101 (as we were because of severe uritary reflux) or for example if the Dr. is determining wither to admit your child into the hospital or not. In my dr.s office they start with a scan of the forehead. But when my dr. was weighting the possibility of admitting my new born into the hospital he also took a rectal for an accurate reading.