Discussion
Silly question and probably basic medical care point 1, but...
My daughter had a high temperature this week relating to a bit of tonsilitis. She is only 9 so she was given antibiotics to clear her throat and the usual dosing of Calpol.
When we get a temperature it is the body heating itself to a temperature that will kill off the bug that is infecting them. Why then do we use calpol/aspirin/paracetamol to cool ourselves down, are we just making the infection last longer than it would otherwise do?
My daughter had a high temperature this week relating to a bit of tonsilitis. She is only 9 so she was given antibiotics to clear her throat and the usual dosing of Calpol.
When we get a temperature it is the body heating itself to a temperature that will kill off the bug that is infecting them. Why then do we use calpol/aspirin/paracetamol to cool ourselves down, are we just making the infection last longer than it would otherwise do?
A big question without answers,
There are two conflicting schools of thought on it and no agreement.
What is clear is that letting the "body do it's thing and fight the infection with a fever" risks brain damage, seizures, organ damage including kidney damage from pre-renal failure and others,
Plus the fever is very unpleasant to bear.
So we have antipyretic medicines in widespread use.
This article is the most cited (sourced by other researchers) https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedic...
Concluding:
...... Therefore, if not otherwise contraindicated (eg, aspirin in young children because of the risk of Reye syndrome), such drugs can be used to provide symptomatic relief in patients with fever, to reduce the metabolic demands of fever in chronically debilitated patients, and possibly to prevent or alleviate fever-associated mental dysfunction in the elderly. ....
To research it any more usefully, you would have to set up a trial of use medicine vs use nothing for every disease going. Which is expensive and impossible.
Whats more interesting is whether the antidote to paracetamol poisoning should be mixed into paracetamol in the factory, as its window of safety is small and you can harm yourself severely with a small number of tablets in overdose.
There are two conflicting schools of thought on it and no agreement.
What is clear is that letting the "body do it's thing and fight the infection with a fever" risks brain damage, seizures, organ damage including kidney damage from pre-renal failure and others,
Plus the fever is very unpleasant to bear.
So we have antipyretic medicines in widespread use.
This article is the most cited (sourced by other researchers) https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedic...
Concluding:
...... Therefore, if not otherwise contraindicated (eg, aspirin in young children because of the risk of Reye syndrome), such drugs can be used to provide symptomatic relief in patients with fever, to reduce the metabolic demands of fever in chronically debilitated patients, and possibly to prevent or alleviate fever-associated mental dysfunction in the elderly. ....
To research it any more usefully, you would have to set up a trial of use medicine vs use nothing for every disease going. Which is expensive and impossible.
Whats more interesting is whether the antidote to paracetamol poisoning should be mixed into paracetamol in the factory, as its window of safety is small and you can harm yourself severely with a small number of tablets in overdose.
Tom8 said:
Silly question and probably basic medical care point 1, but...
My daughter had a high temperature this week relating to a bit of tonsilitis. She is only 9 so she was given antibiotics to clear her throat and the usual dosing of Calpol.
When we get a temperature it is the body heating itself to a temperature that will kill off the bug that is infecting them. Why then do we use calpol/aspirin/paracetamol to cool ourselves down, are we just making the infection last longer than it would otherwise do?
Also "heating itself to a temperature to kill the bug" is wrong.My daughter had a high temperature this week relating to a bit of tonsilitis. She is only 9 so she was given antibiotics to clear her throat and the usual dosing of Calpol.
When we get a temperature it is the body heating itself to a temperature that will kill off the bug that is infecting them. Why then do we use calpol/aspirin/paracetamol to cool ourselves down, are we just making the infection last longer than it would otherwise do?
Above 42 odd C you die, and a very high fever is 40.0C. You certainly feel like death at 40.0
Bugs traditionally die at around 70+C in cooked steak, and formal sterilisation of equipment is 130C
The_Doc said:
Whats more interesting is whether the antidote to paracetamol poisoning should be mixed into paracetamol in the factory, as its window of safety is small and you can harm yourself severely with a small number of tablets in overdose.
I seem to recall that a drug company produced a brand of paracetamol + antidote back in the 70s, but really can’t remember the brand or the formulation. Presumably acetylcysteine was used. Certainly never saw a prescription for it.The_Doc said:
A big question without answers,
There are two conflicting schools of thought on it and no agreement.
What is clear is that letting the "body do it's thing and fight the infection with a fever" risks brain damage, seizures, organ damage including kidney damage from pre-renal failure and others,
Plus the fever is very unpleasant to bear.
So we have antipyretic medicines in widespread use.
This article is the most cited (sourced by other researchers) https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedic...
Concluding:
...... Therefore, if not otherwise contraindicated (eg, aspirin in young children because of the risk of Reye syndrome), such drugs can be used to provide symptomatic relief in patients with fever, to reduce the metabolic demands of fever in chronically debilitated patients, and possibly to prevent or alleviate fever-associated mental dysfunction in the elderly. ....
To research it any more usefully, you would have to set up a trial of use medicine vs use nothing for every disease going. Which is expensive and impossible.
Whats more interesting is whether the antidote to paracetamol poisoning should be mixed into paracetamol in the factory, as its window of safety is small and you can harm yourself severely with a small number of tablets in overdose.
Thank you, not such a silly question then. I suppose, yes, if you have a temperature you want to be more comfortable so makes sense to drop it down, If you didn't would the bug go away quicker? Probably something you don't care about when you feel really bad so will take the drugs.There are two conflicting schools of thought on it and no agreement.
What is clear is that letting the "body do it's thing and fight the infection with a fever" risks brain damage, seizures, organ damage including kidney damage from pre-renal failure and others,
Plus the fever is very unpleasant to bear.
So we have antipyretic medicines in widespread use.
This article is the most cited (sourced by other researchers) https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedic...
Concluding:
...... Therefore, if not otherwise contraindicated (eg, aspirin in young children because of the risk of Reye syndrome), such drugs can be used to provide symptomatic relief in patients with fever, to reduce the metabolic demands of fever in chronically debilitated patients, and possibly to prevent or alleviate fever-associated mental dysfunction in the elderly. ....
To research it any more usefully, you would have to set up a trial of use medicine vs use nothing for every disease going. Which is expensive and impossible.
Whats more interesting is whether the antidote to paracetamol poisoning should be mixed into paracetamol in the factory, as its window of safety is small and you can harm yourself severely with a small number of tablets in overdose.
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