When Is A Fever Too High For A Child?

Almost all parents have had to feel their child’s warm, feverish forehead and felt anxious. You might be nervous in a similar way with questions like “Is it serious? How high is too high? Do we need to take them to the doctor?” We’ve answered some of these pressing questions for you below.

When it comes to fever, many paediatricians say that speedy medical treatment can often be crucial. On the other hand, in a majority of situations, fevers are not harmful or dangerous, and instead may even be beneficial for your child as they help to ward off infections naturally.

A vital factor is knowing when to take action and treat the fever, and when to let nature do its thing.

What Counts as a Fever?

A typical body temperature for a child can be anywhere between 97 and 100 degrees Fahrenheit, with the average falling around 98.6 degrees F. Thus, someone would have fever if their body temperature reaches or exceeds 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit. If you’re measuring your child’s temperature with an oral thermometer, then anything above 99.5 degrees F should be considered a fever.

How High is Too High?

Fevers are rarely ever something to be scared of and are almost never dangerous, except for hyperthermia. This is when someone has a high body temperature because of their inability to cool down in an extremely hot atmosphere. In order to cause any significant harm to tissues, a fever must reach 107. This occurs in very rare cases.

Therefore, in the case that your child’s temperature crosses 104, you should call the doctor. This does not necessarily mean there’s any threat to your child, but in any case they should go for a check-up to assess if anything might be wrong.

Causes of Fever

Fever is a tell-tale sign indicating that the body is functioning properly to fight and defeat potential infections and diseases. By means of a chemical reaction, the body increases the core temperature in order to stop harmful bacteria and viruses from multiplying. Because bacteria and viruses usually only have the ability to grow and reproduce in optimal conditions, making their environment imperfect is a useful way of discontinuing them.

In children, viruses are the most frequent way that fevers occur. In fact, young children may even have up to 7 and 10 viral illnesses with fevers annually, particularly if they attend day care, preschool and other child-populated facilities. This is because children can catch and transfer viruses especially easily, making these easier to spread among kids. Bacteria, after viruses, are the second most common source of infection. Fevers can be caused by both kinds of infections, whether viral or bacterial.

Fevers in very young children, particularly infants who are younger than 3 months old, are the most worrisome for parents and doctors alike. This is because their immune systems have not fully developed yet, which could expose them to the risk of several severe illnesses.

On the other hand, fevers in slightly older kids like those going to preschool and school, is something that does not need to be worried about as much. However, action must be taken if the fever continues for four or more days and results in symptoms such as a severe sore throat, irritability or significant listlessness, pain with urination, or worsening coughing.

The Right Way to Take a Temperature

Knowing how to correctly take a temperature is a skill that is vital for almost every parent, which they will find themself needing frequently and must therefore have acquired. With babies and infants of under 1 year of age, a rectal temperature has been considered by far one of the most accurate methods of taking a young child’s temperature. Parents must therefore be comfortable taking a rectal temperature. New parents can often be afraid and hesitant to take a rectal temperature, but this is not painful to the baby and is a fairly straightforward technique once you know how to do it.

In order to take a rectal temperature, the first step is to lubricate the digital thermometer with petroleum jelly. Then, parents should insert the silver tip of the thermometer into the baby’s rectum about a quarter to a half of an inch. The thermometer should be held gently for about one minute, then removed and the temperature read. There are various guidelines and illustrations available demonstrating the correct way to take a rectal temperature, for example those by the American Academy of Paediatrics.

With children above the age of 1, the most suitable and accurate ways of taking a temperature are by means of an oral digital thermometer or a tympanic (ear) thermometer. Ear thermometers are widely considered to be for toddlers. These are generally accurate, but may sometimes miss the mark if the child has a lot of earwax build up.

When to See a Doctor

For babies who are under 2 months of age, a fever would be counted as any body temperature exceeding 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit.

On the other hand, if the infant’s temperature is under 96 degrees F, this might also be something to look into.

In case of an unusual temperature in your baby, it is safest to call your doctor or take the infant to the emergency department, as your baby may need to be seen right away.

In infants and children over the age of 3 months, a temperature of over 101.5 F would be considered a fever.

If your child’s temperature reaches or crosses 102.2 F, it’s best to call your doctor.

Most fevers disappear in a couple of days. However, if a fever has continued for four or more days, it’s important to call the doctor. Additionally, the doctor should be called immediately if the feverish child is also experiencing vomiting, diarrhoea, headache, sore throat, earache, pain when urinating, swollen joints, stiff neck, difficulty breathing, severe stomach ache, localised pain, or a dark rash. If the child is listless or refuses to consume fluids, the doctor should be called in such cases as well.

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