[AndrewsMother]

Other than waiting and warm baths, what should/could I do.

 

[Gator-mom]

Tylenol? This happened to my son last winter when he was around 12 mo. We were in Canada without any health insurance, and we couldn't get our Dr friend on the phone. So we did the bathes, took the clothes off and gave tylenol. It took an hour or so, but it did come down.

Good Luck!

 

[allbrightmama]

It was suggested to me that wearing a wet t-shirt and wrapping up in a blanket can bring down fevers without causing shivering.
Maybe post in Health and Healing for homeopathic suggestions?
If you have a healthcare provider that you trust I would contact them.
Hope your toddler is feeling cooler soon...

 

[maddymama]

Along similar vein (sp?), a wet washcloth on the forehead or other part of the body helps break DD's fever whenever it gets high. I second the Tylenol. Our ped says to try not to use Tylenol on most fevers, but at anything over 103 go ahead and dose the kiddo up. I think they want to prevent febrile seizures.
Have you called the nurse/ped oncall? They usually give us great advice.
~maddymama

 

[es1967]

A few months ago DS's fever shot up to 107. We ended up in the hospital. It went from 103-107 pretty fast. So I would really watch it. I was really freaked out. I did the cool wash cloths, cool baths, tylenol and Motrin. Many of the doctors are now saying Motrin is safer than Tylenol. You can actually alternate between the two. The Motrin worked so much better than the Tylenol for us. It ended up being a throat infection and it just went away by itself.

 

[finn'smama]

I would give motrin and contact my hcp.

 

[AndrewsMother]

Thanks for the advice.

I gave DS motrin and bathed him in tepid water. DH is putting him to bed and once he is asleep I will recheck his temperature.

He is active and playful. I have a head cold so perhaps he has caught my bug.

I have yet to call his doctor, because I knew that temps under 104 are generally not serious. DS is voiding and acting normal. I am concerned, but not overly worried right now.

 

[glorified_rice]

Personally, I would try to do nothing for a fever below 104. Normally a fever is exactly what the body should be doing in the presence of a infection. Every time my son gets a fever, I read Dr. Mendelsohn's book "How to Raise a Healthy Child in Spite of Your Doctor. http://www.askdrsears.com/html/8/t082100.asp This has always been helpful to me too. Sometimes I give Motrin though, as I know how uncomfortable it can be to have a fever. Dr. Sears also has a really good dosing guide for Motrin based on weight.

 

[finn'smama]

Aw, I hope he feels better in the morning

 

[Just1More]

I'd do nothing overall but just cuddle him and make sure he's getting plenty of fluids. I wait 3 full days before I worry about a fever because that's how long it takes for a virus to run its course. After 3 days, it could be bacterial, so it's worthwhile to get them checked out. Incidentally, we've never had a fever go beyond 3 days... I never give anything to try to bring it down. I am careful not to overheat them, though. Once, when dd was cosleeping still, she had a fever of about 103, and she was sleeping between us under a warm blanket, and our room got very warm. She woke up very, very hot. We actually went to the ER because we felt we'd overloaded her system since she already had a fever. They sent us home to wait for our doctor to open. Well, when the doc opened, they wanted to do the classic three tests: x-ray (for bacterial pnuemonia), catheter (urine, for UTI), and blood work (for white blood cells). We let them do the catheter (but we were really unhappy about it and wouldn't do it again.), and then the blood work. We declined the xray until after the blood work came back because if she didn't have a high WBC count, then she didn't have bacterial pneumonia and didn't need the xray. That's why I would have objected to the UTI test, too. It was invasive and necessary ONLY if they needed to find out why the WBC was high. Turns out, it wasn't high. So, although she was hanging on to a temp of 104-105, the doctor said not to worry about it since "all the bloodwork was clear". Hmmm. Sure enough...3 hours later, and 3 days to the hour, her fever broke and she was fine. Lesson learned. Now, we wait.

In fact, ds had a fever (of 102-103) for 2 days earlier this week, and now dd is in bed with her turn of it. She's 3, and it's about 103. I check on them more frequently, and like I said, be sure they are drinking lots, but other than that...let it run it's course.

JMO.

 

[alegna]

There is no reason to do anything. Medically- fever itself does not need to be treated. That is not a high fever for a toddler either.

We don't treat fevers medically. If it seems particularly high or the child is uncomfortable, I try to reduce with WARM (not cool or tepid) baths.

-Angela

 

[knowerofnada]

We don't treat fevers either. Lowering the fever negates its purpose. Fevers are healthy and I promise you all that treat them that if you try NOT treating them, you will see the illnesses overcome much faster. I've repeatedly seen 103, 104 fevers vanish in 24 hours, and I firmly believe it's because I let the fever do what it's intended to do, which is to kill off the offending organism. It's hard to watch little ones suffer, but it's such a relief when it's gone in a day versus a week.

I do give Infant tylenol for severe teething pain. I would also give it for other pain not involving illness.

 

[finn'smama]

I don't treat all fevers, but if the kids are exceptionally uncomfortable I treat 'em and we've never ever had a fever last more than 24 hours either.
And fwiw, I check fevers in Celsius, so 103 is not that high then? I usually treat at 39.

 

[AndrewsMother]

DS has not had a fever in almost 2 years, so I have forgotten a lot. The last time he had a fever and a runny nose he spent 4 days in the Hospital with RSV, so I am somewhat concerned. This will be day two so hopefully by Thursday his fever will disappear.

 

[alegna]

Quote:

Originally Posted by finn'smama I don't treat all fevers, but if the kids are exceptionally uncomfortable I treat 'em and we've never ever had a fever last more than 24 hours either. And fwiw, I check fevers in Celsius, so 103 is not that high then? I usually treat at 39.

39 C = 102.2 F

103.8 F= 39.89 C

There is no reason to treat a fever other than comfort.

-Angela

 

[MidnightCommando]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Just1More ... catheter (urine, for UTI), and blood work (for white blood cells). We let them do the catheter (but we were really unhappy about it and wouldn't do it again.), and then the blood work. We declined the xray until after the blood work came back because if she didn't have a high WBC count, then she didn't have bacterial pneumonia and didn't need the xray. That's why I would have objected to the UTI test, too. It was invasive and necessary ONLY if they needed to find out why the WBC was high. Turns out, it wasn't high. So, although she was hanging on to a temp of 104-105, the doctor said not to worry about it since "all the bloodwork was clear". Hmmm. Sure enough...3 hours later, and 3 days to the hour, her fever broke and she was fine. Lesson learned. Now, we wait. ...

I wonder why they had to do a catheter to test for a UTI. We are going through a UTI right now for the second time and it has never been an invasive test - just testing urine.

TO the OP - How is your son doing? If he has no other symptoms (like he's getting a cold or virus), please take him in after 2-3 days. I always thought behavior was the biggest indicator of illness but after going through what we are with DD I will not follow that advice anymore. Although it's much less common in boys, he could have a UTI which needs to be treated with antibiotics, left untreated could lead to kidney scarring. My DD is getting kidney ultrasound this week b/c of a UTI. Not trying to scare you, but err on the safe side.

 

[soccermama]

DS had a temp like that once - we gave him Motrin (Tylenol doesn't last as long as Motrin), cool wash cloth and plenty of TLC! He broke the fever within 24 hours.

 

[rainbowmoon]

Temp-Assure by Herbs for Kids

 

[knowerofnada]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MidnightCommando I wonder why they had to do a catheter to test for a UTI.

Easy. Because babies & small children often can't pee on command.

 

[AndrewsMother]

DS fever is down to 101.3.

His urine is clear. Would a UTI cause his urine to look dark?

I truly think that he has a nasty cold. I have had a cold for over a week, and now Ds is congested with a barky cough too.

His eyes are not draining, and he is not complaining of ear pain so I am going to wait and see. If his temp is still high tomorrow night we are going to the doctor on Friday morning.

He has not had any motrin or tylenol today, so the drop in temp without meds is assuring.

Thank you for the advice and recs.