Giving a baby adult panadol

[Bella29]

Just asked my dr hubby and he said that you would need to give an 8kg baby, 4 tablets before they would even think about treating.... So guys as worried as you all are you really don't need to be. they would need to be given 200mg/kg for treatment to be considered. I wouldn't expect you guys to know that kind of info. Just a reminder that when I was a kid mums used to crush up panadol with a bit of jam to give to kids. It isn't crazy what she suggested. It just isn't what Babyluv is happy with. that is enough for the carer not to do it, but nothing to panic about

[delphmoon]

Just asked my dr hubby and he said that you would need to give an 8kg baby, 4 tablets before they would even think about treating.... So guys as worried as you all are you really don't need to be. they would need to be given 200mg/kg for treatment to be considered. I wouldn't expect you guys to know that kind of info. Just a reminder that when I was a kid mums used to crush up panadol with a bit of jam to give to kids. It isn't crazy what she suggested. It just isn't what Babyluv is happy with. that is enough for the carer not to do it, but nothing to panic about

Hmm. Both your posts concern me. Paracetamol is one of the most dangerous drugs. Its effects on the liver is significant and can be fatal in the event of overdose. It is expected that health professionals would encourage parents to be VERY careful with paracetamol dosages for this reason so your comment of "don't worry' is alittle misinformed being that based on what you have said regarding dosages- a parent would only need to give the wrong dose 2-3 times to cause an overdose! Thats easy to do across the day!! This is not to mention the effects on a babies liver and kidneys from repeated high dosages.

And, yep- back then adult paracetamol was crushed and given to babies- thats probably why paracetamol is now recommended to be given as an oral suspension to kids so the dose is right for their weight rather than just 'oh yeah- 1/8th of a tab will do'. And I would be interested in knowing the overdose stats from back then to.

Anyway- I would be VERY concerned an angry at anyone being so complacent as to not bother checking correct dosages before giving ANY medication to my child.

[Babyluv]

Thanks for your post Delphmoon.
I always wonder about the actual statistics when someone says when we were kids....
Just because it didn't harm 1 person doesn't mean many weren't harmed. I believe we have these warnings for the best interests of our kids, not to scare us or make life difficult for us.

[delphmoon]

To me, just because the dose may not be enough to warrant treatment or admission, doesn't mean it isn't still overloading the liver, and over time scarring it or damaging it.

Absolutely.

Thanks for your post Delphmoon.
I always wonder about the actual statistics when someone says when we were kids....
Just because it didn't harm 1 person doesn't mean many weren't harmed. I believe we have these warnings for the best interests of our kids, not to scare us or make life difficult for us.

I think so to. Children are soo precious and its not worth risking their health on a guess.

I think most health professionals would prefer parent be over cautious than under caution when it comes to medication administration and babies/toddlers/children.

I know I have instilled this in my husband who is a stay at home dad. When we first started using panadol I explained to him the importance of getting the dosage right and encouraged him to stop and look at the dosage in the syringe before giving it to her- basically to double check each time and not be complacent. Maybe this comes from being a nurse, but once you become complacent or habitual about giving out medication- the room for error increases IYGWIM.

Working in the community- you would be surprised to know there are alot of parents out there who actually think its ok to give their child one panadol tablet and rationalize it by saying 'well adults have 2 tablets, so a child must only need one' I nearly die when I hear this. Then they think because its normal for an adult to have panadol every 4-6 hrs, they can give it to their children every 4 hrs and boom- by 8pm you have an overdose on your hands. Not pretty

Anywho- the way I see it- if they have a safer option (being the baby/children panadol) why not use it? Better to be safe than sorry.

[Bella29]

Delph the point I was trying to make was that because Panadol can be a fatal drug, the dosages that are recommended are well welll, well below what is safe. which is why my it would take 4 full 500mg tablets before treatment would even be considered, so that is 2000mgs of panadol when the dose for that baby is 120mgs. So you see it is more than 15 times the regular dose before treatment is considered likely. So if you did twice the dose and incidentally that is often theraputic for a first dose, you are in no way going to harm your child. Even if you did that for 2 days

I guess I reject this concept of us being more stupid than our parents, who all gave panadol the way that is described above. Sure information is given based on the lowest common denominator ie the most stupid person in the room. I however know that I am not the most stupid person in the room and am happy to do a bit of maths... I am also willing to say to someone else, "here is the information, if you are comfortable making a decision do so." With making our own decisions we take our own responsibility. I personally am happy to take responsibility for my health and the health of my children.

also Delphi there is a difference between telling people to be careful and telling them to be neurotic. yes you need to be careful with panadol. that wasn't disputed in my post, but no you don't need to panic or worry about small miscalculations when you need to give more than 15 times the dose. Each person reading here has to decide what they are comfortable with. If they aren't comfortable, then don't do it. I believe I said that too... But I don't believe that we should give no information as health professionals just in case.... people simply need to be responsible for themselves.

[delphmoon]

Delph the point I was trying to make was that because Panadol can be a fatal drug, the dosages that are recommended are well welll, well below what is safe. which is why my it would take 4 full 500mg tablets before treatment would even be considered, so that is 2000mgs of panadol when the dose for that baby is 120mgs. So you see it is more than 15 times the regular dose before treatment is considered likely. So if you did twice the dose and incidentally that is often theraputic for a first dose, you are in no way going to harm your child. Even if you did that for 2 days
.

I disagree. Once a drug steps out of that theraputic threshold and becomes toxic in the body- thats when it an overdose- not because of some standardized number that does not consider renal and liver function and weight. For instance- I I know I can safetly take 1gram of paracetamol. Someone of the same age, weight etc may 'overdose' on the same dose because they are at end stage renal failure or take medication that speeds up or slows down the metabolism of the paracetamol. But Im getting too far into it yes

I'm not disputing that its peoples choice on what they give- but, as someone who has seen the effects of overdose- I feel there is some responsibility to re-educate people and say "well there are safety issues- maybe try it this way" rather than "nah dont worry about it, it would take 15 doses before you did any damage" IYGWIM

[Bella29]

I don't take more than the recommended dose. I don't recommend other people do either. But if you can't quite get a tablet in exact quarters, then it simply isn't a big deal at all because the margin for error is massive! That is the point of what I am trying to say. People need to not be freaked out by scary stories. I have never seen a baby brought in to emergency in 7 years as an emergency nurse due to a parental error(other than them leaving panadol where the child can get to it). I have seen huge amounts of teenagers come in because they deliberately do it. I have seen kids come in for lots of other things that parents give them, but not panadol overdoses, even if 2 care givers give a dose of panadol each, whilst not brilliant is no cause for alarm. In the Royal childrens hospital in brisbane they used to give a loading dose of 40mg/kg PR instead of the regular 15mg/kg......

[delphmoon]

I'm not disputing what are 'acceptable dosages' are- anyone can look those up online without being a consulting emergency room doctor etc. My post and my opinion was based on how we educate people and as far as I'm concerned, encouraging people to do the right thing and be safe when giving their children ANY medication is important. I would rather promote caution than complacency and I don't think I am creating panic, or freaking people out like you have suggested.