Home care

• Raise your child’s infected area if possible. This will help keep the swelling down.

• To prevent infections, wash your hands before and after touching any cuts, scratches, or bandages.

• Keep the infected area clean and dry.

• Apply clean bandages or gauze dressings as directed by your child’s health care provider.

• Be sure your child finishes all the medicine that was prescribed. If your child doesn’t finish the medicine, the infection may return. Not finishing the medicine can also make any future infections harder to treat.

• Give your child a pain reliever as directed by your child's health care provider. Ask if an over-the-counter pain reliever is OK. And ask for instructions on the right dose for your child’s age and weight. Don't give aspirin to children or teens unless your child’s provider says it is safe. Aspirin can put your child at risk for Reye syndrome, a rare but serious condition.

• If your child feels warm or seems feverish, take your child's temperature (see Fever and children below). Tell your child's provider exactly where you measured the temperature (mouth, rectum, or under the arm).

Follow-up

Make a follow-up appointment as directed by your child’s health care provider. 

When to contact your doctor

Contact your child's health care provider or get medical care right away if your child has:

• Trouble or pain when moving the joints above or below the infected area.

• Discharge or pus draining from the area.

• A fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher, or as directed by your child's provider (See Fever and children, below).

• Shaking chills.

• Pain or redness that gets worse in or around the infected area, especially if the area of redness gets larger or approaches the eyes.

• Swelling in the infected area.

• Vomiting.

Fever and children

Use a digital thermometer to check your child’s temperature. Don’t use a mercury thermometer. There are different kinds and uses of digital thermometers. They include:

• Rectal.For children younger than 3 years, a rectal temperature is the most accurate.

• Forehead (temporal).This works for children age 3 months and older. If a child under 3 months old has signs of illness, this can be used for a first pass. The health care provider may want to confirm with a rectal temperature.

• Ear (tympanic).Ear temperatures are accurate after 6 months of age, but not before.

• Armpit (axillary).This is the least reliable but may be used for a first pass to check a child of any age with signs of illness. The provider may want to confirm with a rectal temperature.

• Mouth (oral).Don’t use a thermometer in your child’s mouth until they are at least 4 years old.

Use a rectal thermometer with care. Follow the product maker’s directions for correct use. Insert it gently. Label it and make sure it’s not used in the mouth. It may pass on germs from the stool. If you don’t feel OK using a rectal thermometer, ask the health care provider what type to use instead. When you talk with any health care provider about your child’s fever, tell them which type you used.

Below is when to call the health care provider if your child has a fever. Your child’s health care provider may give you different numbers. Follow their instructions.

When to call a health care provider about your child’s fever

For a baby under 3 months old:

• First, ask your child’s health care provider how you should take the temperature.

• Rectal or forehead: 100.4°F (38°C) or higher

• Armpit: 99°F (37.2°C) or higher

• A fever of ___________as advised by the provider

For a child age 3 months to 36 months (3 years):

• Rectal or forehead: 102°F (38.9°C) or higher

• Ear (only for use over age 6 months): 102°F (38.9°C) or higher

• A fever of ___________ as advised by the provider

In these cases:

• Armpit temperature of 103°F (39.4°C) or higher in a child of any age

• Temperature of 104°F (40°C) or higher in a child of any age

• A fever of ___________ as advised by the provider