The study, 'Paracetamol prescribing in primary care: Too little and too much?', published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology, looked at medical data from nearly 40,000 children up to the age of 12.
Researchers from the universities of Aberdeen and Edinburgh found nearly one in 20 children had been prescribed an excessive dose by GPs. When they restricted it to children under three years old, the incidence rose to one in four.
About a quarter of children aged between six and 12 years old were under-dosed, while one in eight prescriptions failed to include any dosage instructions at all.
The researchers concluded, 'Both overdosing in young children and underdosing in older children, together with their associated risks of toxicity or under treatment, occur relatively frequently.'
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