Anyone to Recommend a Good Thermometer?

Don't waste your time on an ear thermometer if you have a toddler. The child has to stay perfectly still in order to insert it correctly and get an accurate temp. I asked my ped what a good thermometer would be and he said the ones like what they use in the office. The temperal thermometer one. You run it across their forhead and your done. It sells at Wal-mart for about $49. It is well worth it because you can use it while the baby, toddler, child is sleeping! don't get it confused with the thermometer strip...

I have one that scans across the forehead. We had an ear one, but it was so hard to use and we could try 5 times in a row and get completely different numbers each time (and I am talking whole degrees 99/96/95...) Our new one is great, it takes a bunch of scans as you pass it across the forehead and it reads the temporal lobe and averages all the reads it gets and give you a pretty accurate tempurature. What is considered a fever is a little different, so you have to read and then memorize or keep the guide handy to know, but I like it much better than our ear thermometer.

L.,
I have a friend that has a thermometer that you just put on the side of the baby's tempel and its amazing. So quick and simple don't know how much they cost but the digital one we use just doesn't do it. It takes forever and I can only take my sons temperture when hes sleeping he hates it and thats just under the arm pit.

I like the thermometer that you put in the ear. It is quick and easy and the babies never know you are taking their temp. It is about $25 at any drug store or Wal Mart or Targe. I don't think that it matters who makes it.

Try using the temple thermometer that is available at Walmart for around $30. I absolutely love it because it is more accurate, easier and faster (done in seconds) than our ear thermometer and it doesn't wake the child. My 23 month old loves it when I take his temp.

oh yes, i have a 4 year old and a 5 month old.. best one i bought was an Exergen Comfort Scanner Infrared Thermometer.. It is great!!!!! i recommend it to EVERYONE!!!

I have a Safety First Thermometer (model #49504) It folds up.....has a white tip. Also has a mark that indicates how far it should be inserted. I really like it......This is my first baby so I was nervous about taking the first temperature and this thermometer has been great. Seems to be accurate with Dr's office and it's quick. I have a couple of others that came in kits and they take FOREVER to register the tempeature. This one works great for me. I believe I got it a Babies R Us. Not sure about an ear thermometer......I just avoided those because I have read they are not as accurate. Good Luck.

Exergen Comfort Scanner Infrared Thermometer, we bought it at our local Walgreens. It is a thermometer where you scan the forehead it takes the temp in about 2 seconds. We love it!! Research shows it is as acurate as rectal, which is the most accurate. It is a little pricey as compared to traditional thermometers but worth every penny when you have a sick-fussy 2-year-old like we did over Christmas.

L., I am a pediatric nurse and we tell our parents to always use a digital rectal thermometer under the age of 6 months to get the most accurate core body temp. Always make sure you keep new batterys on hand for it and keep them changed. Over 6 months- axillary is ok with a digital ther. just remember to add a degree to the final reading. Ear ther. are ok but usually are made for older children so the tip gets into the ear canal and fits to get the accurate reading. Hope this helps! L. S

I bought a thermoscan thermometer that is like what my doctor's office uses. I have been using it for a year now. The cheapest price is at Walmart. I have heard that the ear themometers are not accurate. The thermoscan is used on the forehead. I hope that this helps.

Hi L.,
I have an ear thermometer and I love it. I have an 18 month old daughter and I use it on her. I probally started using on her when she was a year old, ask your ped. when they suggest to start using it. I have done both rectal and ear check and they were both close in temp. I bought mine four years ago at Target. It is Hivox i-scan TS-510. I hope this helpful for you.

R.

I love my thermometer. It's a no name brand, but the two important things to me are that it has a flexible tip and a quick read time(6-10 seconds). I always use it rectally, but my 16 month old has never minded because it's so quick. I'm saving the one I got in a kit for oral later on. I've used it for myself and it takes forever.

We have the Braun ear thermometer that folds in half for storage, I do not know the name of the model, sorry.

It works great. A few tips a nurse showed me.

1) Do not just insert in the ear. Hold the outer ear and pull towards the back of the head a bit to open the ear canal more and allow the thermometer to be seated before clicking for the temp.

2) NEVER reuse a cover. It is tempting, but can result in a bad reading.

3) Keep fresh batteries on hand. Sure enough, the night your child is sick and feverish you'll get a low-battery tone and not have them on hand. (We keep them in the basket with the covers)

4) Take the temperature three times over 5 minutes in each ear to get a good, blended reading.

HTH!

Hi L.,

the bad news about the tympanic (ear) thermometers is that they can be very inaccurate. if it ifs not aimed directly at the eardrum, which believe it or not can be tricky, they will not pick up the correct temp, also, wax buildup in the ear can also cause false readings. the ones with the longer probe can even damage the eardrum of a baby that may jerk toward the thermometer suddenly. One you may want to check into is a temporal artery thermometer which reads the temp of a superficial artery that runs along the side of the forehead. it's quick, easy and according to studies more reliable than the tympanic method with correct placement, which is very easy to figure out. you can find a good one at walmart or any other retail store, plus there's nothing invasive about it, so no risk of damage to any part of the body.

hope this helps,
Jess

the exergen temporal thermometer is good. u can get it at walmart. they use it at the pediatricians office thats how i found out how to get one. its about $30. just simply moving it across the forhead to scan their temp.

I have tried several of the ear thermometers and not found one that is acutally acurate. However, they now have a theremometer that you rub across the forehead. I am an EMT and I now that several of the hospitals in the area have gone to using them. The price is comparable to the ear thermometers. I know you can buy them at CVS but you might want to check other drug and/or grocery stores. Hope this helps.