As an infant and toddler, my oldest son, Nathan, was sick all of the time.
In fact, my husband and I had a running joke that if a germ was within 15-feet of Nathan, he’d get sick.
He’s had it all … chicken pox, foot and mouth, flu, colds, pink eye, sinus infections, bronchitis and more. (And I won’t even talk about the weird thing he had when he was three that the doctor’s could even diagnose but made him look like a Franken-toddler.)
For lack of knowledge (or just sheer desperation), we were the “double dosers” (Double dosing defined as ibuprofen followed by acetaminophen every three hours) in order to keep fevers down. The kid just seemed to need this double dose in order for the thermometer to move. (And he was notorious for running 103 – 104 degree fevers.)
Fast forward to our second child, Eve.
Eve was never sick. In fact, she could hang out in a room full of germs and walk away perfectly healthy. And on the off chance that she did catch a bug, she only needed the slightest amount of medicine to make her fever subside. At different times in their lives, Nathan and Ever were the same weight and age, but they were LIGHT-YEARS different in their reaction to medicine. It created a dosing-dilemma.
Have you ever wondered why the correct dose of a medication is important for children at any age and why they react differently?
Dosing-Dilemma – What’s The Right Amount For Kids?
Winter sniffles and coughs bring on the “dosing dilemma” for over-the-counter cold medicines and antibiotics. What is the right amount? Two children of the same size and age can have very difference responses to the same recommended dose of medicine. Children’s Mercy is working on better understanding how genetics, growth and development, disease and environmental factors affect a child’s response to medication.
Currently, Children’s Mercy is exploring a new platform, aptly called GOLDILOKs (think the three bears and things being “just right”) that helps doctors find the right dose for treating leukemia, ADHD and other medical diagnoses. The platform integrates patients’ medical records to provide real-time results, allowing physicians to simulate a dose based on the desired effect for the patient. This model is being applied to studying cardiology drugs, asthma histamine treatment and more. Read more about GOLDILOKs —> HERE.
The really cool part is that physicians at Children’s Mercy work closely with the FDA, NIH and CDC in issues related to drugs in children.
The American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Drugs reviews all aspects of pediatric pharmacology including drug indications, contraindications, absorption rates, routes of administration, dosing, use of precautions and mode of action as they apply to children. The Committee also advises the Board of Directors in matters related to drug labeling, safety and efficacy for both prescription and over-the-counter drugs monitors federal legislation related to the drug approval process and promotes the need for expanded pediatric drug trials.
So, the research being done at Children’s Mercy has the chance to be shared on the national scale helping make sure that kiddos are receiving the correct doses of medicine (both over the counter and prescription).
Kid already got the flu? Check out my 10 Things To Do When Your Kiddos Get the Flu. (I guarantee there is at least one you’ve never thought of before.)
What about you? Are you notorious for being a “double doser”? Experienced the dosing dilemma before…Leave a comment so that I know that I’m not alone.
Make sure to follow Children’s Mercy Hospital on their Blog, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for more medicine education.
Disclosure: Children’s Mercy is a partner of RedefinedMom. However, the written remarks and opinions are entirely my own. Want more information – check out my full disclosure statement.
