Assessment of knowledge and practices of parents regarding childhood fever management in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Background Nearly every child will develop a fever at some point. The challenge for parents is to know when to be concerned. Objective This study used the parent fever management scale (PFMS) to assess the knowledge and practices of Malaysian parents regarding management of childhood fever. Methods A community-based survey was carried out in 12 different public places. A four-part questionnaire was used to collect data from 430 parents of children aged <= 6 years. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine which factors might significantly predict fever burden. Results Usual practices targeted temperature reduction, antipyretic administration (81.4%), and temperature monitoring (86.0%). Moreover, medical advice was sought for illness symptoms (69.8%). The source of medication was either doctor prescription, leftover medicine, or a pharmacist. Parents recorded high PFMS total scores. Standard regression analysis demonstrated that ethnicity, followed by sex, accounted for the greatest variance in the PFMS total score when the variance explained by all other demographic variables in the model was controlled for. Conclusion Our results revealed improper practice in managing childhood fever among parents in Malaysia and suggested that the care of febrile children was motivated by fever phobia. Parents need consistent evidence-based information about the management of childhood fever.