Is it OK to give my infant motrin every 4 hrs and tylenol every 4 hrs but have it staggered?

Question

I heard someone once say it is OK to stagger these two medicines so that you give tylenol, and then 2 hrs later Motrin and then 2 hrs later Tylenol again. This would be to reduce fever.

Answer 1

I believe Motrin is not recommended for babies under six months. Also, it is to be given every 6 hours, not every 4 hours. Tylenol can be given every 4 hours but not Motrin. So, if your baby is over 6 months old, and you have been given the correct dose from the doctor's office, then you can give it like this:
Tylenol, wait 3 hrs,
Motrin, wait 3 hrs,
Tylenol, wait 3 hrs,
Motrin, etc....
This way, you are waiting at least 6 hrs between Motrin doses. This method is only used for very high fevers that are tough to get down. Also, the pediatrician needs to be called if your baby has this kind of a fever anyways.

Answer 2

If you are using Tylenol and Motrin to bring a fever down or to deal with pain (teething, growing pains, etc), you can stagger the medicine. Start with the Motrin and every 4 hours give the Tylenol. Motrin should be given every 8 hours -- no more than 3 times a day.
I used this with my twins quite a bit to bring fevers down and for teething and ear infections. It is pretty effective, you just have to be vigilant with the times you are giving it. I would keep a paper handy and write down what time you should be giving the medicine and follow that.
If it's not working and the fever is breaking, try a cool bath and if you're really concerned, call your pediatrician!!

Answer 3

It is okay to rotate not stagger motrin and tylenol every four hours. The rotation keeps the child from receiving too much of the same medication while relieving pain and fever.

Answer 4

There was an article in this months BabyTalk magazine that addressed that exact issue. Here's what they said:

"Fact or Fable? Treat fevers with both ibuprofin and acetaminophen.
Fact. For kids 6 months and older. A recent study found that alternating ibuprofen and acetaminophen every four hours reduced high fevers faster and kept them lower that using only one kind of pain reliever. But try just one type first: if that doesn't help, talk to your doctor about whether this regimen might help your baby."

So, as long as your baby is over 6 months old it is okay to alternate. But, not every 2 hours, every 4 hours or else you're overmedicating. And be sure to call your doctor and get the correct dosage of each based on your baby's weight.

Answer 5

It is absolutely fine to stagger the two drugs, except in 4 or 6-hour intervals. It is ALWAYS the advice the we give out (I work in the ER, most often in charge of handling the "medical advice" calls). Just follow the dosing instructions for your child's weight and everything will be fine. If you have any questions or concerns, or the fever will not break, definitely give your pediatrician a call.

Good luck!

Answer 6

No that's not quite right, give Tylenol, then 4 hours later you can give Motrin, then 6 hours later Tylenol...repeat as needed. Contact your doctor to get approval and correct dosage fro child's weight.

And as for the "paramedic" who answered, Infant Motrin does not contain asprin, it is ibuprofen and safe for infants 6 months and older with doctor approval.

Answer 7

Theres a correction you want to do it every 4 hours because motrin is supposed to stay in the system for 6-8hours so you want to fluctuate them every 4 hours and it is completely safe to do this as long as it is infants motrin and infants tylenol. You don't want to overdose your baby. ALso if the fever is not braking and gets too high then you can always try giving him a lukewarm bath. You don't want to give him a cold bath because it can make the baby convult because of the shock to his hot body temperature. Another thing that I do is a washcloth behind the neck and on the forehead, but again not cold.

Answer 8

yes - one is metabolized via the liver (tylenol) and the other thru the kidneys (motrin). The ER nurses recommended this to me when my daughter was almost 3 with a fever of 105 that would not budge!

Answer 9

Staggering between tylonol and motrin is a technique that is often used to reduce fevers that dont seem to break. Call and talk to your pediatrician, make sure they are ok with this...and make sure your little one has lots of fluids. Make sure to FOLLOW the directions for intake on the BOTTLES. VERY IMPORTANT>

Answer 10

You can rotate the two ..but do not give it to your child between the 4 hours. You can give your child tylenol then 4 hours later motrin. But dont everdo it. The more medicine you give a child the less they build up their immune system and the sicker they will be as they get older.