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Only these 2 drugs are used in children. Dosage is based on the child’s weight, not age.
When a child has a fever, parents think that it is more effective and safe to reduce it – ibuprofen or acetaminophen (paracetamol).
RBC-Ukraine answers this question with a link to a post on Instagram by pediatrician Daria Vlasenko.
What is important for parents to know
Fever is not dangerous and is not a reason to panic. Before giving medicine, give the child something to drink or breastfeed to avoid dehydration.
- Paracetamol is a group of analgesics that specifically affects the production of prostaglandin substances and thereby reduces fever and pain.
- Ibuprofen is a group of anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) that affects inflammation, thereby reducing pain and fever.
Only these 2 drugs are used in children. Dosage is based on the child’s weight, not age.
There is no minimum or maximum temperature at which a child needs an antipyretic; the guideline is always the child’s well-being. Maintain a time interval between adjacent doses – at least 4-6 hours.
If you know that paracetamol helps your child well, use it first.
It is not advisable to combine drugs in one dose – the risk of their side effects increases – toxicity to the kidneys increases.
In November 2016, the journal Clinical Pediatrics published the results of an extensive study on the effectiveness of antipyretics in children 6 months-11 years old, which compared ibuprofen at a dosage of 7.5 mg/kg of weight and paracetamol at a dose of 10-15 mg.⠀Ibuprofen worked in children faster than paracetamol – effect on average 90 minutes, paracetamol 2 hours
The effects of ibuprofen lasted longer than 1 hour in most children (but not in all children). The safety profile of paracetamol and ibuprofen is approximately the same.
But are these drugs so harmless?
- Paracetamol in overdose is toxic to the liver (which is especially dangerous for children with existing liver diseases).
- Long-term use of ibuprofen can cause irritation of the stomach lining, bleeding and kidney problems.
