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1) What about the recent FDA warnings on use of cough and cold medications in young children?
The use of over-the-counter cough and cold medications has recently come under a lot of scrutiny from the FDA and physician groups such as the American Academy of Pediatrics. The concerns have revolved around adverse side effects and even a few reported deaths in very young children who were given these products. While the majority of these harmful side effects occurred due to overdose and dosing errors, the FDA is now advising that cough and cold medications not be used in children under 2 years of age. << FDA Advisory >> DoseDoctor was actually created with these concerns in mind. And, we are confident that the dosing information we have provided to parents has helped them give the correct dose to their child. While we at DoseDoctor still believe these medications can be used safely when given in proper doses, we must follow FDA guidelines and therefore will no longer provide dosing instructions for cough and cold medications in children younger than 2 years of age. DoseDoctor will continue to provide accurate dosing for fever and pain relievers such as acetaminophen (Tylenol, etc) and ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, etc) for all children, and for all OTC medications for children over the age of 2.
2) How Does DoseDoctor Calculate My Child’s Medication Dose?
All pediatricians know that properly dosing medication to children is most accurately done by weight. For instance, the medically correct dose of acetaminophen (Tylenol, Feverall, and others) is 6.8 mg per pound of body weight (or 15 mg per kilogram). That means a 10 pound child should have a dose of 68 mg. The dose for a 20 pound child would be 136 mg, and so on. DoseDoctor uses widely published data on OTC medications and their ingredients to calculate each child’s dose in that way. Therefore, each calculated dose is specific for your child. For the very few medications for which dosing information is only available by age, DoseDoctor will provide that dosing.
3) Why is DoseDoctor more accurate than label directions?
By reading the directions on medication labels, it is obvious that the dosing is not very specific for your child. These dosing instructions usually recommend doses based on age and weight RANGES. For instance, some medication labels instruct a 6 year-old to be given the same dose as a 12 year-old. This leads to a situation where dosing for neither child is ideal – the smaller/younger child may be getting the correct dose for her, while the larger/older child is getting a less than therapeutic dose. DoseDoctor is more accurate because it uses established dosing data to calculate each child’s dose specifically for their weight. For the very few medications that only have dosing information based on ages, DoseDoctor uses that published data to provide accurate dosing for your child. DoseDoctor does advise parents to ALWAYS READ MEDICATION LABELS FOR SPECIFIC WARNINGS AND CAUTIONS.
4) Is it necessary to provide personal information about my children to use DoseDoctor?
Yes, some personal information is needed. For every child you register on DoseDoctor you will be asked to provide a name (first name only and can use a nickname if you prefer), date of birth, and weight. The name of the child is needed for your own ease of use so that you do not have to re-enter your child’s information each time you use DoseDoctor. It also allows for you to use the medication history tracker for each child. The birth dates are needed as part of the DoseDoctor safety system. For instance, some medications are not recommended for use in children under 6 months of age, while others cannot be given up to age 2 years. Therefore, if you request DoseDoctor to calculate a dose of a medication for your 4-month-old, and that medication is not safe to use under 6 months of age, DoseDoctor will advise you that the medication is not recommended and will not provide a dose. Also, DoseDoctor will check your child’s weight against standard growth charts. If your child’s weight is above the 95th percentile or below the 5th percentile, DoseDoctor will ask you to confirm that the entered weight is correct. This will make sure that accidentally entering a significantly incorrect weight (i.e., entering 100 pounds when you meant to enter
10 pounds) will be caught before a dosing error can occur. Be assured that DoseDoctor is a secure website and any personal information you provide will be kept strictly confidential as detailed in the DoseDoctor Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions of Use.
5) Does DoseDoctor provide health advice or recommend medications?
No. DoseDoctor DOES NOT provide health advice. DoseDoctor DOES NOT RECOMMEND WHAT MEDICATION TO USE. It simply gives you the correct dose of whatever you have chosen. As with all medications you give your child, ALWAYS READ MEDICATION PACKAGE LABELS FOR SPECIFIC WARNINGS, CAUTIONS AND POTENTIAL DRUG INTERACTIONS with other medications. Also, while you may ask DoseDoctor for dosing information for multiple medications for the same child, DoseDoctor assumes you are using this for informational purposes only. DO NOT GIVE YOUR CHILD MORE THAN ONE MEDICATION without first consulting your doctor. DoseDoctor DOES NOT substitute for your physician’s knowledge of your child’s health. For instance, while most OTC medications are safe for nearly all children, some children have certain medical conditions that may make some medications unsafe to use. Therefore, as with any medication you give your child, please confirm with your doctor that it is one that is safe for your child to have. DoseDoctor recommends discussing OTC medications with your doctor at well-child visits. Simply ask “are there any over-the-counter medications my child should not take?” Once you have chosen an OTC medication to give your child, use DoseDoctor to give your child the correct dose.
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