Taking Temperature - Fenton,MI

Ask your pediatrician about some brands available to consumers. I would bet that the ones the hospital uses are probably hospital-grade, meaning they are much more sensitive and accurate than ones you could buy to use at home -- unless you want to spend a fortune. We tried an ear thermometer (is that what you mean?), a supposedly good brand (Braun) but it never seemed to give the same reading twice. I wasn't comfortable using it, and I just didn't trust it was really able to take a good temperature in the ear.

Our pediatrician, who has written some articles about fever in children so I really trust her on this, told us: The best and most accurate way to take a baby's temperature, or a small kid's, is rectally. Parents hate to do it but it is more accurate than oral or armpit or ear temperatures. It does not cause a child pain. Get a good digital thermometer, get thermometer "covers" (plastic disposable covers that slip over it and slip off to throw away) and KY jelly for lubrication and get used to doing it. (I always used to wear disposable gloves too, to keep things very clean since there's the chance of getting poop on your hands etc. And mark this as a "rectal only" thermometer so no one else in the family sticks in in his or her mouth!) And you don't have to do it forever, thank goodness.

If your kid is older, of course, it's time to teach him how you do an oral temperature (second best for accuracy, according to our doctor) but the child has to be old enough to KEEP the thermometer tip under the tongue and not let it roll around in the mouth, or the temp will not be accurate.

Not what parents want to hear, but there it is. By the way, do look online or ask your pediatrician for the correct "fever readings" for rectal versus oral temps in children; a normal rectal temp tends to be slightly higher than a normal oral temp, so a parent could think "My child has a little fever" based on a rectal temp when actually that temp is normal.

I do not have a touchless thermometer, but I have one of the ones that you lightly scan over the forehead and down by the ear (the exergen temporal thermometer) and I love it. My kids will not sit still for under the arm, my kids seems to have little ears and taking it from the other end is not for me.

I have never heard of this but just Googled it... wow! I find it IMPOSSIBLE to take my son's temp accurately. Using a digital thermometer under the arm gives me such a range of results, and the ear ones... yikes.

They have a bunch of the touchless ones on Amazon but hard to know which are good. Looking forward to the responses on this one!

I have the Exergen temporal thermometer.
I hate it.
I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
HTH!

We hvae the exergen temporal thermometer. We bought it at Target. We use it to get an idea of if the temp is high. If it is, we take it rectally to make sure it's accurate.

I have seen the type that goes in the ear but have not seen a touchless that would have been fantastic when my kids were little. I am sure you can find them online

We always recommend our patients take their baby's temperature under their arm. Just put any digital thermometer under his arm, hold it down for a minute and you should be all set. Yes, most babies cry and act like it hurts, but you know it's not hurting him at all. Hold him and walk around if you have to, it beeps when it's done. We NEVER recommend taking their temperature rectally because there's a chance you could puncture his bowel.

Why do you need to take his temperature? You don't need to do it on a daily basis. Only if he's acting sick, or feels warm. As a mom, I can tell you that I totally trust my hand :) You can tell with the palm of your hand to the forehead if someone feels warmer than they should. Then check with the thermometer.

D. (OB nurse)