20 mo wrapping up day 3 of high fevers w/ 105.3 temp! help me please

[red and lulu]

DD has been consistently running temps b/n 102-104+ since Sat. morning. Today I took her to her dr who said that her glands are really swollen but that she can't pinpoint exactly what's causing it. they gave her a ginormous dose of ibuprofen (they agree that it's best to let fevers burn, but said when she's been this hot for this long you should use a fever reducer) and prescribed amoxicillin, plus some pulsatilla for her panic and insane clinginess (she strongly rejects anyone else even touching her but me, even dad). she seemed notably better this afternoon post-appt, probably b/c of the ibuprofen, but now she's on fire again, at 105.3. she's sleeping on me now, her breathing seems a little labored, just short little inhales, but i don't know if thats just the high fever. she's only had one dose of antibiotics so far, so i know it's a little early for her to completely recover, but this is the third day of these sky high temps and i'm freaking a little. the fact that the dr could offer no explanation leaves me feeling even more uneasy. 

I guess i'm just wondering if anyone has any insight/recommendations. I'm worried about my baby. Is this common in little ones this age (20 mo)? What else can I do?

[Llyra]

I think that in your position, I would be looking for another medical opinion-- perhaps the ER? Kids can run crazy high fevers, and sometimes the underlying illness really isn't all that serious. And most fevers in kids have viral causes, so antibiotics will be no help. But it's always possible that there's something more going on-- like pneumonia, for example-- that could turn serious quickly.

My protocol with high fevers is to give fever reducing meds, at least once-- that way I can get the fever down enough to look at the child, apart from the fever. The fever itself with make a child pant, and seem lethargic, so that you can't see if there's really an underlying trouble breathing, or lethargy.

If, once the fever goes down, the child perks up and looks better, and doesn't seem to have other worrisome symptoms-- trouble breathing, dehydration, suspicious rashes, serious pain, stiff neck, etc.-- then I know we're dealing with something that we can safely wait and see. But if you bring the fever down, and the child still looks awful, then it's time for medical advice.

[no5no5]

I agree with Llyra.  A fever of upwards of 105 can be nothing, or it can be something serious.  At this point, if you can't get it down and keep it down, I'd recommend taking her in asap.  Especially since she's now having breathing issues.  And it doesn't sound like your doc ran any tests to rule out the serious stuff, if I'm reading correctly.

[red and lulu]

Thank you both for your replies. When the fever goes down (after I've given her ibuprofen) she seems normal, though still clingy. That being said, she hasn't been below 101 since Friday. We'll see how she is tomorrow, she feels cooler now and is sleeping peacefully.

[SuburbanHippie]

I bet after 24 hours of being on antibiotics she will bounce back quite a bit.  Hopefully that is the case!

[Katc8910]

I would strongly suspect a UTI/kidney infection.  My daughter had one and her symptoms were very similar - high fever and clinginess.  You can do a quick test at home using AZO testing strips which test for leukocytes (white blood cells) and nitrates (produced by bacteria).  Sit her on a baby potty (after washing her first) and collect a urine sample.  However, if that's negative, I still wouldn't rule out a kidney infection.  Have the sample tested (and cultured) at a lab.  Your pediatrician can give you a script to take with you to the lab when you bring the sample.  It's the only way to know for sure.  Kidney infections can be very serious so I'd def. want to rule that out.  My pediatrician always tests for UTI in babies when there is high fever but no other obvious signs of illness. 

[Llyra]

Has she ever had roseola? Three days of very, very high temps, with few other symptoms other than swollen glands, and then on the fourth or fifth day, the temp drops and a rash appears. It's very common in little ones, and very harmless and self-limiting, but it can be frightening because the temp goes so high.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001963/

Antibiotics will not touch it-- it's viral.

[hannahgrace]

High fevers will cause a higher respiratory rate and a very high heart rate...likely 200+ bpm so that is why you are seeing aa bit of labored breathing. . I definitely treat with fever reducers when it gets that high in order to Lowe my ds resp rate and heart rate. A normal healthy kid with a fever that high also will have lower oxygen concentrations so its imoortant to me to help at that point If belladonna doesnt cut it. Hope she feels better soon

[red and lulu]

Thank you all for your recommendations and concern! She's been fever free since late yesterday afternoon. I guess the antibiotics finally kicked in. I was getting worried! When I called the dr back she recommended piggy-backing motrin and tylenol and I was not feeling comfortable with that, so luckily it went away!

[Alenushka]

Kawasaki desease?

[no5no5]

Originally Posted by Alenushka 

Kawasaki desease?

Oh, gosh, I hardly think there's any reason to suggest that.  The kiddo had a few days of high fever, which seems to have resolved without further complications.  That's really pretty common in this age group.