First AID

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  1. First aid when child has high temperature

The most frequent reasons of the fever (temperature increase up to 38,3°C) which isn’t a symptom of a disease are:

  • overheating and violation of the drinking mode (especially children at 3 months or younger);
  • constipation;
  • high physical activity;
  • physical tension (long shout);
  • teething;
  • constitutional features.

If all above is not the reason of fever, then it is necessary:

  • to call the children’s doctor (pediatrician) from policlinic.
  • if body temperature 37°C to 38,5°C, it is necessary to use physical methods of cooling: undress the child, remove diaper. If child’s skin is pink and warm (not marble and not pale), it is possible to rub all child (head, neck, breast, tummy, back, hands, legs with wet cloth.
  • if body temperature is higher than 38,5°C or increases after rubbing, the child needs to give febrifugal (paracetamol or ibuprofen in an age dosage)
  • If child’s skin is pale, marble, extremities cool, then it is necessary to call urgently the doctor or ambulance.
  1. First aid at spasms

Clinical picture of a convulsive syndrome:

The child suddenly faints and falls. Several seconds lasts a tonic phase with tension of muscles: pulling of legs, hands. At this time, there can be respiratory standstill or biting of language because of compression of jaws. Short-term twitching of various muscular groups (up to two minutes), noisy breath. There can be an involuntary urination or an excrement, release of foam from a mouth. After spasms comes the phase of relaxation and the child falls asleep.

First aid to the child:

  • Call the ambulance.
  • Lay the child on a rigid, plain surface sideways so that the head and a breast were on one line, and to raise the head with the rolled blanket. At the same time, it is impossible to displace cervical department of a backbone and it is important to lay the child so that he hasn’t fallen from anywhere.
  • Clean all objects about which he hurt the child.
  • Exempt a neck and a thorax from hard clothes to make breath free.
  • Open the window, air temperature shouldn’t be higher than 20 °C.
  • Do not keep child with force from involuntary movements, do not unclench his jaw, do not pour in mouth liquid, do not insert spoon, finger in mouth.
  1. First aid with apnoe

 

To notice apnoe, look narrowly and listen to the child. Perhaps, you hear the breath, but it is very silent. At his absence the child’s breast doesn’t move. If the child doesn’t breathe for 10-15 seconds and more — it is already possible to call a heavy apnoe case. The skin of the kid can be  cyanotic shade, pulse can become rare. When breath is restored, the child can sharply scream or sob. If you have noticed respiratory standstill cases in maternity hospital — surely tell doctors. Perhaps, they will decide to observe the child and will prolong time of your stay in maternity hospital.

First aid in case of apnoe:

  • Call the ambulance and give the child first aid. Note the time when there was respiratory standstill.
  • Take the child on hands, move it, turn facedown so that blood has flowed to the head. Massage handles, legs, nose, lobes of ears, accurately massage a thorax. Scatter on the child cold water.
  • Carefully throw back the child’s head back and dig out a mouth — maybe the foreign subject has got into a throat.
  • If the child didn’t breathe, make an artificial respiration. It is better to study such manipulations at special courses in advance.
  1. First aid at gripes

Precautionary measures:

  • Diet for the feeding mother.
  • The correct applying of the child to a breast (that the child didn’t swallow air).
  • Use of special small bottles at artificial feeding.
  • Putting the child on a tummy before each feeding.
  • Vertical position of the child after feeding to an eructation air.

How to help the child with intestinal gripes:

  • The calming heat (warm hot-water bottles, diapers on a tummy, to lay out the child on your stomach).
  • Exercises and massage (massage of a tummy clockwise, pulling up of legs to a stomach).
  • Medicines — are connected only provided that above-mentioned methods don’t bring the expected result

This information is based on materials from www.efcni.org. Special thanks to EFCNI for their support and advice 

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