Efficacy of tepid sponging versus paracetamol in reducing temperature in febrile children. Tepid sponging to reduce temperature in febrile children in a tropical climate. Efficacy of sponging vs acetaminophen for reduction of fever. Sponging Study Group. Evaluation of sponging to reduce body temperature in febrile children. The efficacy of tepid sponge bathing to reduce fever in young children. Evaluation of sponging and of oral antipyretic therapy to reduce fever.
A block randomized clinical trial to compare the efficacy of tepid sponging with the use of paracetamol in febrile children was undertaken at the Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Blantyre. Eighty children aged between 6 and 54 months with axillary temperatures of between > or = 38.5 degrees C and < or = 40 degrees C and a clinical diagnosis consistent with upper respiratory tract infection and/or malaria were block randomized to receive either oral paracetamol (15 mg/kg) or tepid sponging. Children receiving tepid sponging were sponged from head to toe (except the scalp) by leaving a thin layer of water on the body. If the body became dry it was repeated and continued until the axillary temperature fell to < 38.5 degrees C. Axillary temperature and assessment of discomfort (convulsions, crying, irritability, vomiting and shivering) were recorded every 30 minutes for 2 hours. A significantly greater and more rapid reduction of fever was demonstrated with paracetamol than with tepid sponging. Tepid sponging without antipyretics is often used to reduce fever, but our results suggest that this is effective only during the 1st 30 minutes. Paracetamol is clearly more effective than tepid sponging in reducing body temperature in febrile children in a tropical climate. The effectiveness of tepid sponging, in addition to antipyretic medication, in the reduction of temperature in febrile children living in a tropical environment, was assessed in a prospective, randomized, open trial. Seventy-five children aged between 6 and 53 months who attended the casualty department of the Children's Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand, with fever (rectal temperature > or = 38.5 degrees C) of presumed viral origin were randomized to received either tepid sponging and oral paracetamol (sponged group) or paracetamol alone (control group). Rectal temperature and the occurrence of crying, irritability, and shivering were recorded over the following 2 hours. A greater and more rapid fall in mean rectal temperature occurred in the sponged group than in the control group. Temperature fell below 38.5 degrees C sooner in children in the sponged group than in control children (P < 0.001). At 60 minutes, 38 (95.0%) of the controls still had a temperature of 38.5 degrees C or greater, compared with only 15 children (42.9%) in the sponged group (P < 1 x 10(-5). Crying was associated with sponging, but shivering and irritability occurred in only one child who was being sponged. It is concluded that tepid sponging, in addition to antipyretic medication, is clearly more effective than antipyretic medication alone in reducing temperature in febrile children living in a tropical climate. Seventy-three children with acute febrile illnesses were enrolled in a study to compare the efficacy of sponging, sponging plus acetaminophen, and acetaminophen alone as methods of lowering body temperature. The greatest temperature reduction was seen in the combined acetaminophen plus sponging group. The smallest temperature reduction was noted in children who received sponging alone. We urge reconsideration of routine sponging of febrile young patients. A study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of sponging as a way of reducing body temperature in febrile children. Of 130 children 73 received antipyretic medication and sponging and 57 received antipyretic medication alone. No difference in temperature reduction was noted between the two groups. It is therefore suggested that sponging be abandoned as a mode of temperature reduction in febrile children whose increased temperature is due to an infectious process. Tepid sponge baths distress febrile children, and their efficacy at reducing fever has not been established. This study compared fever reduction and with (1) acetaminophen alone and (2) acetaminophen plus a 15-minute tepid sponge bath. Twenty children, ages 5 to 68 months, who presented to the emergency department or urgent care center with fever of > or = 38.9 degrees C were randomized to receive (1) acetaminophen alone or (2) acetaminophen plus a 15-minute tepid sponge bath. All subjects received a 15-mg/kg dose of acetaminophen. Tympanic temperature was monitored every 30 minutes for 2 hours. Subjects were monitored for signs of discomfort (crying, shivering, goosebumps). Sponge-bathed subjects cooled faster during the first hour but there was no significant temperature difference between the groups over the 2-hour study period (P = .871). Subjects in the sponge bath group had significantly higher discomfort scores (P = .009). nan
A few small studies demonstrate that tepid sponging helps to reduce fever in children.