Calpol Vs Neurofen

[MaMattoo]

This is a bit long, but I could REALLY do with advice.
DS 20mo..has been given Calpol each time he is sick. 5ml would last 3-4 hours and I would worry about his fever spiking after that..it always does. He is prone to very high temp, mainly due to throat infections. I was told by GP that I could give him Calpol and Neurofen, one after the other with a 3 hour gap. 5ml calpol at 9am, followed by 2.5ml Neurofen at 12, then calpol..

I gave him Calpol at 12.15pm and he had 39.9 at 1.15. He had 38.1 at noon and so I think the fever climbs despite the Calpol. I gave him 2.5 neurofen at 1.30 and took him to A&E and it got better in an hour. He has been diagnosed with a nasty URT (ears, throat..+39.9 fever landed up in A&E) with the GP in Urgent Care telling me to give him upto 15ml neurofen and continue with whatever amount calpol I was giving and it should be fine. She checked a book and told me this...based on DS weight - 15kgs.

Reason would make me believe that I should forget about Calpol and just use neurofen along with the anti-B they gave us and all will be well. The bottle states dosage as 2.5 - 3 to 4 times a day = 10ml max a day. The GP says something else. I am confused about dosage as all GPs say different things..but I know this med works on DS.

My questions:

• do you know/have a child who is Calpol immune?
• do you follow bottle dosage directions?
• what would you suggest I do..because the past 24 hours is the first time I have used Neurofen on DS and it seems to work..making him fever free, less cranky, less red, and more keen to drink juice/milk etc.

Do let me know...I am SO not looking forward to yet another night of spiking fever. I assume that once 4 doses of Anti-B go in his fever will start getting better again.

Here's what i'd (Calpol never did much for my DD when she was young either) i would continue with 3 hourly alternating even tho the calpol may appear to do nothing the paracetamol works better as it is repeated. neurofen does tend to work better for throat and ears as it has an anti inflammatory in it so will obviously it helps with any the inflammation.

Hope he's better soon :)

Urgh sounds rotten for you and your DS

I think (and maybe there's a paed around who can correct me!) that it's still debated whether giving both calpol and brufen together really bring the temperature down more than just using one or the other. Although it used to be common practise in hospitals to use both (and still is in my local A&E).

It may be that calpol doesn't look like its working but if you didn't give it at all the temp would climb higher and faster than what you're actually seeing iyswim?

I use both but unless there's inflammation (like teething and stuff) I prefer calpol just cos brufen is better given on a full stomach and they are usually too sick to eat

Ps the dose on the the dose on the side of my nurofen bottle says 5ml 3 times a day for 1-4 year olds (so the doctor saying 15mls a day sounds right) and you would be very safe to give this as you are still within recommended dosage.

Umm... I don't think I helped much...

Hope your LO gets well soon!

My 9mo DS had a chest infection at new year and i was told by the nurse on NHS 24 to give him neurofen at bedtime as it lasts longer than calpol.

As for dosage, i always stick to what it says on the bottle.

This worked for us. Hope your LO is feeling better soon

when ds has been in hospital with chest infections they have given ibuprofen every 8 hours, it brings his temp down quicker, they said they don't recommend alternating with calpol anymore, and it does sound as though alternating 3 hourly is too much.

Have you tried syringing fluids into him, if he won't drink?

Ds4 recently had pretty high temperature. We were at friends' house and her dh is a consultant. And he said to give it together. Good luck. It worked for us (have done it before too but it was nice to hear confirmation from another dr).

Hiya, sorry you are having a torrid time of it.
Neurofen or ibuprofen is very effective as an anti pyretic if the cause of the temp is inflammatory however paracetamol is a more effective antipyretic

It is safer and considerably more effective to use babies weight to calculate dose and this goes for paracetamol too.
I would continue to alternate the two but perhaps seek advice on the optimal dose of paracetamol for your dc's weight

I have found neurofen good at bringing down a fever- my 17 mo dd's can still climb like you describe with calpol. However I'm v cautious with neurofen due to the effects on the stomach, which is usually empty in an ill child and the diarrhoea it tends to give LO's.

Hope he's better soon

Thank you all so very much. I shall use both for now and shall hope to see the anti biotic kick in soon.
I also think the guideline for calpol goes by weight...being 15 Kgs = 7.5ml per dose for DS. Will try that as he has just recovered from a vomiting bout this weekend..and his tummy might not be great yet.
Hard work, this parenting. Which I don't mind...it's the stress that comes with a healthy dose of panic and fright, when he is Sick...that truly gets me.