{"id":1176,"date":"2023-06-13T18:42:06","date_gmt":"2023-06-13T07:42:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/obmc.health4community.com.au\/?p=1176"},"modified":"2024-01-22T15:12:38","modified_gmt":"2024-01-22T04:12:38","slug":"fever-in-children-when-to-act","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/obmc.health4community.com.au\/fever-in-children-when-to-act\/","title":{"rendered":"Fever in children \u2013 when to act?"},"content":{"rendered":"
Young children commonly spike fevers (body temperature more than 38\u00b0C) with even mild illness, but how do we know if it\u2019s something more serious, and what do we need to do about it?<\/p>\n
A fever is part of the body\u2019s immune reaction from an inflammatory response \u2013 usually due to infection. <\/strong>This is usually due to a virus, but sometimes due to bacteria.<\/p>\n Treat the Misery, not the Number!<\/strong><\/p>\n The fever itself does not require treatment, but we all know that it can feel horrendous to have a high temperature. If kiddo is miserable or in pain, it is good to offer simple pain relief such as paracetamol and\/or ibuprofen which are very effective in bringing down fever and pain in children.\u00a0 That said, some littlies happily run around with very high temperatures, in which case there is no need to treat. Likewise, it is not necessary to wake a sleeping child to give medication for a fever.<\/p>\n The fever itself is not dangerous, but there are certain red flags we need to look out for and seek urgent medical attention.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n\n
\n– dry lips\/mouth\/tongue
\n– reduced urine output \u2013 less than half of usual nappy weight\/number is concerning
\n(or dark coloured urine)
\n– sunken eyes (and sunken fontanelle in very young babies) and absent tears with crying
\n– floppy, irritable or confused behaviour<\/li>\n