Freaked Out by Fever

J.,

Hang in there. My son has had ear, sinus issues since he was 3 months old. He is now 24 months old. I went through a fever issue with my son a couple of months ago. If the ped is not concerned, the you have to try to keep calm. Z-pack take about a day to work. He will be feeling better by the morning. If he doesn't want to drink anything, give him fluid with the medicine syringe. Since it is hot, also try to see if he would like a popcycle. The ones that come in the plastic sleeves would be good. It will give him some fluids and feel good on his throat if it is still sore.

Good Luck and hang in there!!

Well hun, I know this will sound odd but the fever is actually a GOOD thing, because it is letting you know about it sooner and it shows that his body is fighting off something. My daughter has only had like 3 fevers her entire life, and she is 4 1/2 :) She has habitual ear infections and sinus infections and our problem has been that she never shows signs of it. So I have to watch for other things, like her waking up or being restless at night, because that's the only way I can tell. But several months ago she got really sick with a raging double-ear infection and had a fever of 104 when I took her to the ER in the middle of the night. They gave her a combination of Tylenol AND Ibuprofen, and when I asked them they told me they are totally separate medicines and to keep her fever down to alternate them - give her Tylenol every 4 hours, and Ibuprofen every 6 hours - but stagger them so you are giving them medicine every few hours - that way the meds don't wear off and give the fever time to come back. So you can ask your pediatrician about that, and that may help him to feel better more quickly :) For my daughter, I find that the IB actually works better at relieving her pain/fever than Tylenol. And don't feel bad about worrying - he's your kid, what kind of mom doesn't worry about their kid? I have terrible anxiety too, so I take Abby to the doctor every time I have a "feeling" LOL - but I would say 9 out of 10 times I have been right and stopped the infection before it got too bad. It usually takes about 24-48 hours for the antibiotic to really kick in and the fever to go down, so just make sure he is drinking plenty of fluids and he should come out of it and feel better in a few days :)

Good luck, and take care of that little guy!

PLEASE go buy a book on childhood illnesses so you can be better informed and calm your nerves. You will get accustomed to illness in children and take it easier when it happens. Experience is what you do not have now. A book is a big help.
In a child under four years of age high fevers are not alarming unless they top 104°. Fevers tend to break overnight and mount until their highest point around 4 pm in the afternoon.

You will find that for some reason fevers tend to go up in the evening and are usually at their lowest in the mornings. That being said...treat the symptoms with ibuprofen and give the antibiotic time to work. You will become more comfortable dealing with these situations as your little one grows and you get more experience with these childhood illnesses. I feel sure that this is nothing serious...since you have seen the doctor and he seems to be on top of things.

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It is scary, I feel for you. Fevers and falls are my two most stressful things to deal with in young children. But if your pediatrician is aware of everything going on I would trust him. I don't know how high your son's fever is, but you might ask your ped if he recommends giving Tylenol and Ibuprofen alternately. Ours recommended this and it works more effectively at reducing fevers than Tylenol alone.

Antibiotics can take a day and a half or so to really get to working so it may take a bit longer for your son's fever to go away completely and for him to show signs of recovery. It's very good that he's still wetting his diapers, he's not dehydrated, so keep offering him plenty of fluids, especially with the medicines he's taking he needs them.

Hang in there, God bless<3

Zithromax is great! Make sure to give it the same time everyday on a fluids only stomach. It works effectively and much quicker I think than traditional antibiotics. Ibuprofen would most definitely make your little one more comfortable than Tylenol. Use Popsicles to help him stay hydrated. Cancer is EXTREMELY RARE in one so young. And please quit lining out gruesome events unnecessarily. It gets better the longer you are a mom. :). If fever needs a little help coming sown try a tepid bath, but make it only approximately 5 minutes and don't get his ears wet. If his fever is low grade....such as anything below 100 try to let it go for a little while. This is the body's tool to fight infection. Only give an antipyretic. (medication for fever) if it goes above 99.9 or your child seems in pain. Let us know how the little one does.

I haven't read through the other answers so my apologies if this is a duplication...

Our pediatrician said it can be "normal" for a fever to leave and return, when the body is fighting a bacterial infection, not just a typical virus. E.G. a sinus infection vs. the common cold. He said that's why they make you wait so many days before prescribing antibiotics, to ensure it's really an infection.

Anyway, just remember that a fever is the body's way of fighting off the sickness. I went through a similar panic a few months back, when my son had a bacterial sinus infection following some other virus and was really sick for two weeks straight (poor little guy). As long as you're able to keep the fever at 102 or below with Tylenol, he's fine. If it goes higher than that and Tylenol can't control it then you should be concerned. You might also want to try Ibuprofen at night if he's having trouble sleeping, since it works longer. Just make sure your pediatrician agrees on a rotation and don't mix the two medicines during the day.

When my son had the sinus infection he wouldn't eat or drink either and he lost a lot of weight. He was skinny to begin with so it really had an impact. We just kept offering him milk and juice (which he isn't normally allowed to drink so much of) and he drank *just* enough to stay hydrated. After being sick, we just bulked up on whole milk products (cottage cheese, yogurt) and pretty much let him eat anything to regain the weight.

Hang in there mama! If your pediatrician thinks all is well, you're probably fine, but don't ignore your maternal instincts either. It's better to look neurotic vs. worrying yourself silly.

Was that for an ear infection ? it takes about 24 hours for the fever to break with an ear infection after taking antiboitic... I think. So he may have a fever most of the night. Advil works better for my kids where Tyn is a little weak for my taste. May want to consult if you want before switching. they have 24 hour nurse to call at the offices to check. It will be okay now that the antibiotic is going to kick in. Keep an eye on hydration.... that is the biggest thing. It will be okay, but certainly keep checking the fever.

If it's viral, the antibiotics will be useless. They are for bacterial infections and will do nothing for a viral infection. The infection will have to run its course. (I hope your ped isn't just prescribing antibiotics to help your anxiety. Some do, and it's not a good precedent.)

If the ped really believes the infection became bacterial somehow, give the meds time to do some good.

Hang in there.