Published 2 September 2008, doi:10.1136/bmj.a1409
Cite this as: BMJ 2008;337:a1409

Editorials

Antipyretic treatment for feverish young children in primary care

No persuasive evidence shows benefit of combining paracetemol and ibuprofen

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Fever is one of the main concerns that parents have when their child is unwell. Many parents believe fever is potentially harmful and worry about its height and duration. It is standard practice for health professionals to give advice about administering antipyretic drugs to children. The most commonly used drugs are paracetamol (acetaminophen) and ibuprofen. Because these drugs can be given at alternating intervals some doctors tell parents to use a combination of both drugs during the course of a febrile illness.

In the linked study (doi:10.1136/bmj.a1302), Hay and colleagues report a randomised controlled trial of paracetamol, ibuprofen, and a combination of the two drugs in 156 febrile children age 6 months to 6 years in primary care. The trial has two primary outcomes—time without fever in the first four hours and fever associated discomfort after 48 hours.¹ Hollinghurst and colleagues compare the costs to parents and the . . . [Full text of this article]

¹ Department of Primary Health Care, University of Oxford, Headington, Oxford OX3 7LF

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This article has been cited by other articles:

• (2008). Ibuprofen Is Superior to Acetaminophen for Treating Childhood Fever. JWatch Emergency Med. 2008: 5-5 [Full text]  
• Purssell, E. (2008). Combining paracetamol and ibuprofen for fever in children. BMJ 337: a1590-a1590 [Full text]  

Rapid Responses:

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In the interest of the public.

Wouter Havinga
bmj.com, 22 Sep 2008 [Full text]

antipyretic treatment for feverish young children in primary care

alan w fowler
bmj.com, 3 Oct 2008 [Full text]

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