The
above is the title from an article which appeared in the February 3, 2003
issue of WebMD. The article reported on a survey from Children's Hospital,
Boston, and was published in the American Academy of Pediatrics February
issue of the journal, "Pediatrics." The study noted that in 1998 colds
accounted for 1.6 million emergency room visits and 25 million ambulatory
visits by both children and adults. They also noted that most colds are
caused by viruses and do not require any medical intervention. In spite of
this they noted that many families seek medical care for the treatment of
colds. The objective of this study was to determine if parental
misconceptions about the cause and appropriate treatment of colds may
contribute to unnecessary medical services.
The results of the survey revealed some common
misconceptions parents have about colds. Although 93% of parents understood
that viruses caused colds, 66% of parents also believed that colds were
caused by bacteria. Additionally, 53% believed that antibiotics were needed
to treat colds. The article noted that both these concepts are false yet
they are common beliefs among parents. The survey also revealed that parents
said if their child had a cold, 23% of them said they'd go to an emergency
room and 60% said they'd go to their doctor's office.
In response the American Academy of Pediatrics issued some
common sense advice to parents who have children with colds. That advice
included the following:
-
Don't give
antibiotics -- they won't work. Neither will most over-the-counter cold
medicines.
-
Don't give
aspirin to a child with a fever. It can cause an uncommon but serious
reaction called Reye's syndrome.
The researchers themselves concluded that there are vast
misconceptions about the appropriate treatment of colds, and that these
misconceptions cause an increase in health service utilization. Their
suggestion for correcting this problem was increased specific educational
interventions for families. It is their hope that such education may reduce
inappropriate antibiotic-seeking behavior and unnecessary medical care for
colds.