A. Although some parents will find this surprising, as many still have a big fear of fever, in general you should not wake up an older child to check his temperature or give him a fever reducer.
If you consider that the main reason that you give your child Tylenol or Motrin is to make him feel better, since the fever is just a symptom and isn't going to really hurt him, then it doesn't make sense to wake him up if he is already sleeping comfortably.
It might be a good idea to wake up your child to check his temperature or give him a fever reducer if he:
- is a newborn baby or younger infant, especially less than two or three months old, at which age fever can be a serious symptom
- has a chronic illness, like cancer, other immune system problems, chronic urinary tract infections, etc.
- is sleeping, but is sleeping very restlessly and you think he will get a better night's sleep if you give him a fever reducer
- has had a fever that has been fairly consistently been going up and down and you know that he is due for a fever spike which is going to make him miserable
- may or may not have a fever, but you will sleep much better knowing for sure
Some parents might also want to be more aggressive in checking and treating a fever if their child has febrile seizures, but there is no research to show that this really prevents further seizures. You can wake your child up and give him a fever reducer at the first sign of fever though if you feel that it helps though.
Related Links:
- When To Call Your Pediatrician for a Fever
- What Do I Do About My Child's Fever?
- Exergen Temporal Thermometer - A non-invasive way to check your child's temperature, so that you don't even have to worry about waking him up! Just scan it across his forehead to get a reading, like many Pediatricians now do in their offices.
