Children and Parenting

A child's fever is mostly caused by a viral infection such as a cold, and the child's overall condition matters more than the fever itself. If the child still plays and eats well even with a fever, it is often not an urgent situation.

• 38 degrees or higher counts as a fever (ear and forehead thermometers can be a little off)
• For fever medicine, acetaminophen (such as Tylenol) can be used from 4 months of age, and ibuprofen (such as Brufen) from 6 months of age
• The dose is based on body weight, not age. Follow the weight-based dose in the product leaflet
• Wiping the child with a lukewarm wet towel is only a supporting measure, and you should stop if the child starts shivering
• Do not dress the child too warmly, and give small amounts of fluid often

Even if the fever comes down, it is safer to have the cause checked at a pediatrics (소아청소년과) clinic the next day.

If even one of the following applies, go straight to the emergency room (119), even at night.

• A fever of 38 degrees or higher in a baby under 3 months old
• A seizure (including a febrile seizure), or when the child is drowsy and responds only weakly when woken
• When the child struggles to breathe, or the lips turn blue
• Severe signs of dehydration — urine drops sharply, no tears when crying, and the mouth is very dry
• When the child says their neck is stiff, or you see small bleeding spots that do not disappear when pressed
• Unbearable severe stomach pain, green (bile) vomiting, or blood in the stool

In Muromuro's 'Night care for children' menu you can find Moonlight Children's Hospitals (달빛어린이병원) and night care centers that are open now.

• Routine care and vaccinations: a neighbourhood pediatrics (소아청소년과) clinic
• When your child is ill at night or at the weekend: Moonlight Children's Hospitals (달빛어린이병원) and local government night care centers (the 'Night care for children' menu in the app)
• When any of the emergency signs above appear: the emergency room (119)

It helps to settle on one regular pediatrics clinic, so your child's growth and vaccination records can be followed continuously.

National immunisations can be received free of charge according to the standard schedule (at designated medical institutions and public health centers).

• You can check the schedule and the records on the '예방접종도우미' (vaccination helper) site or app
• Even with a slight cold, vaccination is often possible if there is no fever, so talk with the pediatrics clinic before putting it off
• Even if a shot was missed, you do not start again from the beginning; you carry on from where you were (catch-up vaccination)
• Stay at the clinic for 20~30 minutes after the shot, and contact the clinic if there is severe fussiness or a high fever the same day

Every child moves at their own pace, so one thing being late is not immediately a problem. Still, talk with a pediatrics clinic in the following cases.

• When the infant and child health check-up (영유아 건강검진) result says 'further evaluation recommended'
• When height and weight percentiles keep falling well behind other children of the same age, or drop sharply
• When eye contact, babbling or responding to their name feels clearly delayed

The infant and child health check-up (from 14 days to 71 months of age, free at set times) is the best chance to check development, so please do not miss it.