Temp not coming down with calpol

[janeylacey]

9 week old: had jabs today and has now had three doses of calpol (last one at 8:15pm) but temperature is 38.5 and not coming down.

111 referred to OOH who said to monitor and take him to A&E if it got to 40.

He also said to continue administering calpol every 4 hours rather than limiting to 3 doses.

I'm worried as calpol isn't bringing temp down. What should I do?

Sorry no AIBU: posting for traffic as quite concerned for DS.

Today 21:55 cookiedough1

Such bad advice.

A&E ? Why?

Cooling down with water? Absolutely not.

since when was this bad advice? It was recommended by doctors when mine were babies and always worked, more effectively than meds. Not saying remove all clothes, but sponging hairline, neck arms, legs and back with tepid (not cold) water does reduce temperature

Nhs says specifically not to do it and a pp has said why

since when was this bad advice?

I have no idea specifically when the advice changed, but it did.

As you know what has caused the temperature you don't need to go to A&E unless it gets higher. Of course if you are worried and feel like you want to go in, do, no such thing as timewasting with such a young baby.

The reason they recommend to go to A&E normally is because if the temperature is caused by an infection young babies can go downhill very quickly, but this isn't a temperature of unknown source.

Your body temperature will be lower than his so no need to worry it will warm him up more :) Skin to skin like this is called Kangaroo Care and it's very well studied.

It's been advised against to use cool water since DS was tiny and he's nine!

Agree with the other posters who said turn heating down or open window a bit, also reduce clothing. My DD was hospitalised for one night when her temp reached 40 (aged 12 months), they stripped her down to her vest and gave calpol every 6 hours on the dot, discharged the next day. Hope his temp comes down soon.

He's in a vest. Have managed to cool the room to just under21 degrees.

I would never up the dose of calpol without advice from a medical professional but I am now worried that the OOH GP said it was okay to continue giving doses of calpol when bottle clearly states only 2 doses for under 3 month olds.

Surely that will effect his kidneys too?

Exactly what BertieBots said above. My DD was the same after her first jabs and temp was that high - we went onto Calpol every 4 hours on GP’s advice rather than just the 3 doses, like they’ve told you. I know it’s scary but it will come down. Keep offering fluids, monitor nappies and temp etc but don’t go to A&E unless it hits 40. Some babies are just more affected than others. Don’t do cold flannels/neurofen etc - stick to NHS advice. Hope it lowers soon

Cross post. No, OOH GP is right. They explained it to me when I was in that situation that they put that number of doses on the bottle because they want parents to seek medical advice if it’s needed more, so they’re aware of the situation. That doesn’t mean it’s unsafe to give more, just that you shouldn’t do so without GP sign off. I specifically asked as I had the same worries as you. If it’s any consolation DD (now 6mo) didn’t have a bad reaction/high temp to her 12 or 16 week jabs.

Thanks @Pumpkinpie657 & @BertieBotts - really helpful advice.

To posters querying why I'm posting for advice: no, I'm not using MN as my only source of medical advice because I'm not a moron. No, I'd not consult mumsnet if DS was having a seizure or bleeding out of his eyes or not breathing: I'd call an ambulance because again, I'm not a moron.

As it happens, I don't trust every word that comes out of the mouth of every GP but I do know that MNetters have a wealth of experience when it comes to raising children and caring for babies so it seemed like a great place for a second opinion/ sense check.

No problem; I honestly could’ve written your post after DD’s first jabs, down to questioning the GPs over their Calpol advice. I hope you have a decent night; hopefully the fever will break soon and he’ll be more comfortable. If you’re still unsure at any point call 111 again or take him to the GP in the morning to double check temp. I honestly think it will have come down by then though .

I really hope so! I've been checking it every 30 mins and it did go down to 37.5 but is now back up to 38. Next dose of calpol due in an hour.

How’s your little one doing this morning @janeylacey?

Morning! Temperature was absolutely fine by 5am but seems to be going up again now! Any ideas why that might happen?

Body temperature is usually at its lowest around 4am. What is the temperature now?

ds2 sis exactly the same after the 8 week jab. it's an awful jab! gp also recommended the 4 doses of calpol, he got much better after 24h post jab. so long as he is feeling and wetting nappies its ok

Hey

I am a paediatrician. This is almost certainly down to jabs. Having said that temperatures in babies under three months should be taken seriously. If it hasn't settled I would want to see him. I would pop to the gp today. Hope he feels better soon.

Only 37.1! Was a tad concerned to see it going upwards again though!

It's been a rough 24 hours! I'm sure these medical people know what they're doing but it seems like an awful lot to put such little babies through.

Thanks @NemoRocksMyWorld - he's still miserable but the temp is down now so we'll see how it goes!

Yesterday 22:33 dementedpixie

Nhs says specifically not to do it and a pp has said why

I think a pp said the cold flannel thing doesn’t work because if you apply something very cold to overheated skin the body tries to normalise the temperature which results in temperature going even higher- which is completely true, scientific fact etc. It’s also a fact that moisture drying on the skin brings the temperature down. I think talk of cold flannels and sponging down etc confiused the issue here, sorry. I used to use a damp cotton wool ball, dipped in tepid (not warm, not cool) water to dab around LO’s hairline, back of neck, upper back area, and it always worked with no risk to baby. Advice changes all the time, but doing this in addition to keeping baby in a well ventilated room, loose clothing, natural fibres etc, should do the trick.

Hope your baby’s soon better OP

I’m glad it went down! 37.1 is pretty good less than 24 hours after jabs. Like pp said, if it’s still high or goes back up maybe pop to the GP but it sounds like things are going in the right direction. Just keep doing what you’re doing; it will all be over soon!

Thanks @Pumpkinpie657 - you've really been amazing help: I appreciate it.

I'm just really hoping we won't have a repeat of this at his 16 week jabs.

DS was really unwell after his first set of jabs, similar to your DS. He was absolutely fine at all the others (other than screaming the place down so much the GP from the room next door came in to see if everything was alright ). Not sure why, but he's had all his vacs including flu (he's now 2.5yo) and he rarely needs anything afterwards. Just to give you hope that it might not be the same next time.

That's a relief @PurpleCrazyHorse. How long did it take your son to recover from the 8 week vacs? We still have a very uncharacteristically miserable baby. He feels very hot but his temp isn't particularly high.

My ds was miserable for a couple of days after his first jags. 16 week ones were fine as far as I can remember.