[redhedded]

Well, B is sick for the first time at 13 months; he has had a fever of 103-104 today.

I feel quite familiar with fever and know well that it is healthy and indicating that the body is busy fighting those invaders. However, most toddlers I know (through my friends) run fevers of 101-102 when sick. My daughter has always been a high fever runner. She goes from totally well to fever rising quickly to 104-106, which includes one incident of febrile seizure, and spikes every 3-4 hours with alternating medications. We know the drill, tepid bath, tepid rag on head and body, cool fluids.

I have been so fortunate; my kids are very healthy and seem to have great immune systems. The doctor has never been able to tell us more than some kids always run a really high fever, aside from last summer's possible explanation of cyclic neutropenia, which turned out to be just a scare.

Any BTDT parents or nurses that can give me a slightly more detailed explanation of why such high fevers. Thanks in advance.

[sugarbabysmommy]

No advice, just hope your little guy is better soon and that's a run of the mill illness. My babe's only had two real fevers above 100, and the highest recorded was 102.3, so I have no experience. Yeah, real helpful, aint I? Hope you get some answers. Are there any other symptoms, urine is normal etc?

[pwheatle]

Some kids are just more prone to spiking higher temps than others. The temps you are listing are definitely high and getting into the scarey range when you talk about 106. In light of the fact that he has had febrile seizures in the past I would forgo the usual don't treat a fever unless it is 38.5 celcius ( I am Canadian and would have to do the math for the conversion to farenheight) and treat at the first sign of fever. By treating I mean give Tylnenol and decreasing the amount of clothes he is wearing.
Hope this is a bit helpful.

Tricia

[redhedded]

thanks all. Tricia, he was not the one with febrile seizure; my daughter was. He has not worn clothes since this morning, and I am treating fever prophylactically. Happy, smiley and talking but definitely more tired than usual; he doesn't sleep a lot. Horrible, awful putrid poo, not diarrhea but thick pale yellow. (sorry for the detail.)

Dr. is going to see him in the am.

[joskimo]

I don't know if this will help at all, when my dd#1 was about 5 she went through several weeks of high fevers and then normal temps, we couldn't figure out what was going on, I was so scared. Finally she was diagnosed with a sinus infection. I don't know why it would make fevers come and go, but once diagnosed we were able to deal with it.

Good luck and my best wishes to you all,

Jo

[Lovebug]

Red - We must be cosmically connected!!!!!!! My son, who will be 2 tomorrow, woke up this am with a 104.1 rectal temp...he has the same icky bowel movements....ugh! I feel for you and Baby B!!! {{{Hugs}}}}

We went to the ped today for his 2 yr checkup and ped said it is a virus for sure...let it run its course...ugh....double ugh.

--Renee

[moonbeam23]

My son (7 now) used to run very high fevers as a baby and toddler. It was very scary! One time, when he was 106, I put him in tepid bath and took him to the emergency room. They gave him an antibiotic shot and it seemed to bring it right down. I found that children's Motrin works best for fever, and if you can catch it before it spikes, it seems to work better. Hope all is well soon.

[MamaTo6]

Redhedded...nothing to add, just wanted to say Im sorry babe is so sick and send you a cyber hug. It sucks when our babies are sick and especially with scary fevers. Let us know what the Dr says in the morning. Try to get some rest.

[tobeafamily]

Uncontrolled fever (meaning it's 103 or greater with Tylenol or other fever reducing agent) in an infant or toddler is dangerous, mostly because their body doesn't have the resources to sustain itself - leading to dehydration, siezures (as you've seen), chemical/electrolyte imbalances and extreme fatigue. There's a higher risk of brain damage from the high heat.

Theories on why some children seem to get higher fever than others abound - from genetic disposition to underlying disease to compromised or insufficient immune system response mechanisms. I don't think anyone really knows and I don't think there's any one answer. Just like why some kids get continual ear infections and others get none.

HTH, hope B feels better. If he's uncontrolled and consistently over 103, please be sure and contact your doctor right away as I'm sure you will. Babies this age can decompensate very rapidly.

JMHO

Regina

[redhedded]

Renee, I am so sorry for babe and you. I don't want to be graphic, but. . . my dd has never had any abdominal issues in three years; the odor is well, abnormal. DD has really high fevers with only typical viral infection symptoms; thanks Jo, her fevers have been spaced out from age 16 months to now, 3.5 years, and have only been the number of times she was sick - 6.

We do alternate Tylenol/Motrin spaced appropriately, every 3-4 hours, always with her, and are doing with him. Temp is coming down with medication and he is well hydrated. Thanks Regina.

[momofmykids]

Red,
Rotovirus has a very VERY distinct poo odor (I'm a veteran...I can smell rotovirus a mile away!). However, it usually is accompanied by vomiting.

Hope your sweet one is better soon!

[MrsSmith]

Red - No expertise to offer, as Em has only once had a fever over 104 (as an infant and we wound up in the pedes ED). Just wanted to say I hope B is better soon and that whatever germs he has don't spread through the household.

[tomandcate]

Hi Red,

Just wanted to commiserate...Sam runs high fevers and it is extremely frightening and frustrating. Apparently his (bio) half-brother also has high fevers and both boys have had seizures (thankfully Sam has only had one - at 11 mos. old - it was very short but enough to send us to the ER in an ambulance, as he was unresponsive for 5 minutes following the seizure).

Since that first seizure, where his temp rose rapidly to 105 within 30 minutes, he has had 4-5 more high temps (103-105), always otherwise asymptomatic and back to his busy, playful self as soon as the fever gets down below 102-103. We treat with Tylenol every 4 hours and alternate with Motrin every other 4 hours, so he is getting a dose every 2 hours. We were using tepid baths but the doctor told us to stop those altogether because the risk of making him shiver is too high, even with slightly warm water...better to use the wash cloth (Sam hates that so it is harder) and make sure all clothing is removed. I am sure you know that you should not swab down with alcohol as they used to do - the alcohol is too cold and will make them shiver.

The guideline he gave us was to begin treating the fever if it rises above 101, and if it stays at or above 103 longer than 30 minutes with treatment (meds, washcloth, etc.), call the doctor.

You probably already know what to do in case of a seizure, and when they are most likely to occur, so I won't go into that...but I did want to follow up on Regina's post and add the information I've read and been told:

Brain damage from a fever will not occur unless the fever is over 107.6 degrees F (42C) for an extended period of time. Although many parents fear that untreated fevers will keep going higher and higher (up to 107 degrees F or more), untreated fevers caused by infection will seldom go over 105 degrees unless the child is overdressed, or trapped in a hot place. The brain's thermostat will stop the fever from climbing above 106 degrees F.

Also I just wanted to post this for anyone else experiencing this problem with their tots:

For the great majority of children, high fevers do not cause seizures. About 4% of children, though, will sometimes have seizures with fever. These febrile seizures are caused by rapid increase in temperature, not by the height of the temperature. Once a child already has a high fever, a febrile seizure is unlikely with the current illness. In any event, most febrile seizures are over in moments, and even longer seizures have no lasting consequences as long as the seizure is handled properly by caretakers. Treating fevers early in these children may prevent further febrile seizures.

Most children who experience febrile seizures outgrow them completely by 5 years old. Children who have their first seizure before age 1 are more likely to have additional seizures in the future. Of children who have a febrile seizure, 30% of those will have at least one more seizure; 50% of that 30% will have at least two more seizures. There is no link between febrile seizures in infancy-toddler years and epilepsy.

On a side note to anyone facing this with their kids - remember to carry fever-reducing meds everywhere you go (especially long car rides, for instance) since it is the quick onset of a fever that can cause a seizure. And be sure to notify any caretakers of how to react in case of a seizure! It was the scariest 10 minutes of our lives after Sam had his...

Cate

[ggman]

My daughter has had high fevers with urinary tract infections which can also cause vomitting and diarrhea... if persists ask ped to check urine.

[Guspiv]

Red I hope B is feeling better really soon