Oral paracetamol dosing in hospitalised children in the UK

• Published in: Archives of disease in childhood Vol. 108; no. 7; pp. 589 - 590
• Main Authors: Craske, Jennie, Gill, Andrea
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health 01-07-2023; BMJ Publishing Group LTD
• Subjects: Acetaminophen; Analgesia; Analgesics; Analgesics, Non-Narcotic; Child; Child Health; Child, Hospitalized; Children; Dosage; Double-Blind Method; Ethics; Hospitals; Humans; Neonates; Nurses; Obesity; Paediatrics; Pain; Pain, Postoperative; Paracetamol; Pediatrics; PostScript; Surveys; Underweight; United Kingdom; United Kingdom; United Kingdom > UK; Analgesia; Paediatrics; Pain
• ISSN: 0003-9888; 1468-2044
• DOI: 10.1136/archdischild-2023-325598

The doses recommended for all indications, except postoperative pain, are based on the age of the child rather than their weight.1 We understand that the BNFC reflects the recommended dose for over-the-counter (OTC) use of paracetamol and therefore needs to be easy for parents to use, however, additional information about suitable doses for hospitalised children is needed. Forty-six paediatric acute care clinical sites with representation from the UK paediatric pain special interest group (the Paediatric Pain Travelling Club) and the Neonatal and Paediatric Pharmacist Group responded to the survey. Eleven sites had a single respondent.Table 1 Clinical sites contributing to the survey Sites Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool Barts Health NHS Trust, London Belfast Hospital for Sick Children Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London Birmingham Children’s Hospital Evelina Children’s Hospital, London Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital, Brighton The Portland Hospital for Women and Children, London Bristol Royal Hospital for Children Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, Stanmore Cambridge Children’s Hospital Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital Noah’s Ark Children’s, Cardiff James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough Derbyshire Children’s Hospital Great North Children’s Hospital, Newcastle Tayside Children’s Hospital, Dundee Nottingham Children’s Hospital Darlington Memorial Hospital Jenny Lind Children’s Hospital, Norwich Royal Hospital for Children and Young People, Edinburgh Oxford Children’s Hospital Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, Exeter University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust Leeds Children’s Hospital University Hospital of North Midlands, Stoke Spire Leeds Hospital Southampton Children’s Hospital Leicester Children’s Hospital Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, Truro Twenty sites (63%) did not use age-banded paracetamol dosing for any indication.