Forehead or ear thermometer?

Executive Member Joined: Mar 02 2008 Posts: 479

I'm looking into buying a thermometer. however, I want to know which one, the ear or forehead thermometer is more accurate?

rectal thermometer is not an option....

ps its for a baby 6 mo and up...

Executive Member Joined: Sep 24 2009 Posts: 264

Personally, I don't like either one. I've had them both over the years. The ear thermometer I ended up throwing out. I guess I never got the hang of using it properly, but it's supposed to be pretty simple. My then dd2 was sick. I took her temp with the ear thermometer, and it said something around 100 degrees. No way. She was burning up. I took her temp rectally, and she had a 104.5 (while already on both Tylenol and Motrin). That night the ear thermometer went in the garbage.

Also, me pediatrician's office uses them, and there are times that I know my baby has fever because I checked it right before going to the office, but the baby is wiggly when the nurse takes it and it shows up as normal. When I get home he still feels hot, so I take it again just to check, and sure enough he has fever.

Currently, I have a forehead thermometer. At first I really liked it. I practiced when no one was sick, and got pretty consistent normal readings. When they got sick, though, I wasn't getting consistent readings. One would show 99.2 and then another would show 101.1. I don't know, maybe it's me. I still have it. Every now and then I use it, but not too often.

my childrens' school has the forehead one, and it's very inaccurate. They know that if it registers 99.0 then the child really has fever! (around 101 or something) I always use the ear!

my childrens' school has the forehead one, and it's very inaccurate. They know that if it registers 99.0 then the child really has fever! (around 101 or something) I always use the ear!

Gold Member Joined: Jun 01 2009 Posts: 2307

The forehead thermometer is known to give an estimate only, it is not completely accurate. Why don't you use a digital underarm thermometer? It's accurate and easy to use. Just pop it under the child's arm and hold their arm down until the thermometer beeps that it's done.

Gold Member Joined: Aug 24 2010 Posts: 1487

My son was in the hospital a few times as an infant - they used digital under arm thermometers ther (and they don't recycle them, so now I have a bunch.) They work rectally, too, and they said that they're more accurate like that, but you get a pretty good idea with underarm.

I always wonder what I would do if I needed to check ds's temp on shabbos, though...

Posted: Wed, Sep 07 2011, 3:05 am Post subject: re: forehead or ear thermometer?

Rectal or in the mouth are best, followed by ear, in my opinion.

I do find it gross that people use the same thermo for mouth and rectal, even if it is cleaned with alcohol in between Laughing

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Platinum Member Joined: Nov 04 2008 Posts: 7930

Does no one use underarm thermometers anymore?

I always thought they were the most accurate.
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Posted: Wed, Sep 07 2011, 4:03 am Post subject:

Just remember that when a kid has an ear infection, an ear one isnt the most pleasant thing.
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