Night Calls To The Pediatrician

It's the middle of the night and your child is feeling ill. What should you do?

Many parents of a sick child have had to face the dilemma of whether to wake up their pediatrician in the middle of the night or wait until the morning.

This month's Parenting magazine explains when it is essential to make the call. Parenting magazine's senior editor Diane Debrovner visited The Saturday Early Show to discuss the common parental predicament.

Debrovner says many people don't want to call the doctor at night because they feel it's an inconvenience. But, she says, often doctors do not mind being bothered. Debrovner explains that a doctor would rather deal with something sooner than later. If your child is really sick, delaying the phone call to the doctor could result in the child getting sicker.

Debrovner gives a check-list of symptoms that mean a parent should wake up the doctor.:

• High Fever: Debrovner says to call the pediatrician when a child under the age of three months has a temperature of 100.5 degrees F, or 101.5 degrees F for an older baby. She explains that at these temperatures, there is a strong likelihood that your child has a virus, which isn't that serious. However, it's possible your child may have a bacterial infection, which can be dangerous in infants. Debrovner says besides a fever, you'll want to be vigilant about a child who is lethargic.
• Trouble Breathing: If your child is having trouble breathing, it could be a sign of something serious. Call the doctor immediately. Serious problems could include an asthma attack or the swallowing of a foreign object. The doctor, in many cases, can determine if you have to bring your child to the emergency room by listening to him or her over the phone. If your child's cough sounds like a bark, it could mean the croup, which is a narrowing of the upper airways. Debrovner says this can be dealt with at the home by briefly bringing the child outside into the cold air.
• Seizures: Debrovner says seeing your child have a seizure can be very traumatic for a parent. When a child is having a seizure, the arms and legs will shake, the jaw will clench and, in some cases, the child will lose consciousness. Most times, a seizure is caused by a fast-rising fever. But there are times when a seizure is the result of some other condition, such as epilepsy or meningitis. Either way, Debrovner says, call your doctor to be safe.
• Dehydration: Dehydration in children is something that can come on very quickly. It can be made worse if the child has a fever or diarrhea or is vomiting. Debrovner says the best way to fight dehydration is to give your child an electrolyte solution every 15 minutes. But, she says, if your child refuses to take the liquid and hasn't gone to the bathroom for about six hours, you should make the call to the doctor. Dehydration is something that should be taken very seriously.
• Head Injury: Debrovner says children fall on their heads all the time and at night, they may fall out of bed. Call the pediatrician if your child loses consciousness. Also, if an infant somehow falls out of the crib, call the doctor right away because an infant's skull is very fragile.
• Severe Stomach Problems: Severe stomach problems can be caused by many things. Your child may have green vomit. She says if your child has been eating a lot of green food and gets sick, then that is probably the reason. But if your child hasn't been eating green food and the vomit is green, then there may be bile present. It could signal a serious problem. So, Debrovner says, you'll want to call the doctor right away. Other stomach problems that may require a call to the doctor include severe abdominal pain. Debrovner says this could signal food poisoning.
• Presence of Blood: Debrovner says if your child has just a little bit of blood in his vomit or stool, then you probably have nothing to worry about. But, she says, it's better to be safe than sorry because a lot of blood could signal a serious gastrointestinal problem, including an obstruction or tear in the stomach.