Attitude and behaviors of mothers regarding fever in children; a Duzce University Faculty of Medicine study

Abstract

Introduction: In mothers with fever complaint who applied to Duzce University Faculty of Medicine Research and Practice Hostipal, defining attitude and behaviours and general knowledge levels about fever are aimed in this study. Methods: 230 patients who were admitted to pediatric emergency service and general pediatric outpatient clinics from February to June 2017 were included in the study. Questionnaires with 26 questions were evaluated in this study. Descriptive features, chi-square test and one-way ANOVA followed by Bonferroni's post-hoc comparisons tests were performed in all statistical analyzes. Results: It was learned that 79.1% of the mothers were placing the thermometers under the armpit during measurement. Most of the mothers picked the normal body temperature as 35.5-36.4 ° C (57.8%). 74.8% of the mothers considered fever as a disease and 98.7% of the mothers thought that fever was harmful. Most of the mothers were considering the advices of doctors on reducing fever of children (48.7%). The most common intervention to reduce fever was to shower with warm water (73.5%). The most preferred antipyretic was paracetamol (76.1%). As the education levels increased, rates of showering with warm water and taking out the children's clothes were increasing significantly (p=0.027, p=0.025, respectively). Conclusion: In this study, it was seen that the mother's general knowledge about fever was inadequate and there were occasionally wrong attitudes and behaviors in order to reduce fever. We think that detailed information about fever given to the families by physicians will prevent unnecessary applications in this area.