Take Temperature Under Arm Baby

Axillary or armpit temperature is the least accurate of the three.

Take temperature under arm baby.

Lift the baby s arm remove the thermometer and read the temperature. Keep the thermometer under your arm for 5 minutes or longer. Temperature taken under the arm usually is considered to be less accurate than most other body locations for measuring temperature. Some babies don t mind having their temperature taken rectally while others seem to hate it.

Keep the thermometer in your armpit until it beeps. Place the tip of the thermometer under your child s tongue toward the back of the mouth and ask your child to keep his or her lips closed. It can be nearly 2 degrees lower than a rectal temperature which is the most accurate. Hold them comfortably on your knee and put the thermometer in their armpit always use the thermometer in the armpit with children under 5 years.

Most digital thermometers emit a beep when finished taking the temperature reading. To take an accurate axillary temperature the thermometer point must fit snugly into your baby s armpit. If your child has been eating or drinking wait 15 minutes to take his or her temperature by mouth. Hold your baby s arm still while the thermometer takes the reading.

Make sure the thermometer is touching skin and not clothes. It s also commonly used to check temperature in infants to 5 year olds because it s. Underarm temperature is considered the safest way to check the body temperature of children under 3 months old. A normal axillary temperature ranges between 97 6 degrees and 99 4 degrees fahrenheit according to the einstein healthcare network 1.

If that reading is over 99 degrees fahrenheit take her rectal temperature for a more precise and accurate result. This measurement also known as axillary temperature tends to be about half a degree to a degree below oral temperature 1. A digital thermometer can take an oral rectal or axillary temperature. If you don t get a snug fit the reading you get will probably be too low.

Hold your arm down tightly at your side. Hold the baby s arm tightly in place so he cannot move it. The baby s skin should completely surround the thermometer. Squeeze your arm against your body to hold the thermometer in place.

Make sure that your baby s clothing doesn t get between the thermometer and the skin. If your baby protests you might want to take her underarm axillary temperature first. To take a temporal temperature push down on the button to turn it on. Remove the thermometer without touching the tip.

Therefore normal axillary temperature would range between 97 6 degrees and 98 1 degrees fahrenheit 36 4 36 7 degrees celsius. Swipe the thermometer from one temple to the other and behind the ear until it beeps. Remove the thermometer when it signals that it s done and read the number. An armpit temperature is generally 1 degree lower than an oral temperature.