Taking temperature

freeatlast2014 · June 2012

What method do you use?

I do rectal every time. And most doctors at my practice think this is the most accurate. However, some whack yesterday told me that this shouldn't be done at 17m that it should be ear or forehead. So, tell me...how do you get LO's temperature?

HALFM00N · June 2012

We stopped doing rectal at 1 year old, since it's critical to get the exact temperature of an infant. I think it's safe to say arm / ear is accurate at this stage?

HALFM00N · June 2012

I googled, it says rectal is the most accurate, but I am not sure if it's necessary. However, oral and arms are also acceptable, but not be as accurate.

MarSamWhitney · June 2012

Ive only done under her arm pit. She has never really had a fever though.

mrebecca · June 2012

I've also only done armpit.

SweetHurricane · June 2012

We've always done it rectally. Getting her to keep her arm still is much harder than holding her legs up. We use a dab of Vaseline and she doesn't even notice it.

debperdoo · June 2012

We have always done ear, our doctors office told us to never do it rectal. He said that while it is the most accurate it can be quite easy to tear something and it is not worth the risk.

That being said ds never had a bad fever, so I wonder if he did what they would have told us to do.

Mom2Mack1 · June 2012

Around 1 she started fighting me on the rectal so now I do under the arm.

CaniacMom · June 2012

I do ear or arm. Joshua has only had a real fever once.

freeatlast2014 · June 2012

Guess I'm being over cautious. Last night I went out and bought a $53 ear one and used it twice today - goes much smoother than the rectal, that's for sure. His fever has been running over 103 (as high as 103.8) the past 24 hours but now that it's come down some I don't feel so bad using the ear. Actually, I kinda like it!

BTW, I totally overpaid by going to Rite Aid pharmacy but last night I wasn't about to take my coupon and go get the same one for cheaper at BRU which wasn't as close and also not next to the over priced food store. Sleep deprivation and a sick kid'll do that to me! Sigh.

RedZee · June 2012

We have gone through so many methods. We got an ear one that we lost but anyway never seemed to give a good read. We had a pacifier one that was totally not accurate and completely useless once she started taking it out of her mouth to press the button over and over again. (It became even less useful when the battery died and it started giving off a high pitched tone.)

We ended up buying the forehead swipe one because it's fast and easy. But, I think if she's running a fever that goes up past 100.5F I'll still take a rectal temp. My friend's kid having seizures from a super high temp completely scarred me and I am insanely over-cautious about temperature now.

Shannda20 · June 2012

We use the forehead method. My kid moves so much and that's the only one he'll let me do. He actually likes it and will take it and try to do it himself. That said we had a high temperature with that and went to the ER and they did the forehead then rectal because it was so high.

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Taking temperature

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