my husband took my son for his 15 month checkup and vacciniations, what the doctor failed to tell him was that he could have fever for a couple of days following the vaccines due to the specific one's he recieved...his fever spiked to 105.9 according to my scanning thermometer that goes accross the forhead, I used luke warm baths to calm his temprature down, and also titrated between tylenol and motrin, was up all night with him, my husband insisted that we not go to the ER or Care Now cause all they were gonna do was an x-ray which our insurance partly covers, and give him motrin, which we already had....his fever broke the next day thankfully, but I did not sleep being so worried about him, I was able to stabalize it at 101-102 thru the night...could I have done anything better??????
Next time give motrin and tylenol when he gets home from the vaccinations. That's pretty much it. Once a fever starts, then it takes a lot longer to calm it, but if you treat before it starts, it'll be a lot easier on you and the child.
thats a a very serious reaction to the vaccine . please watch your child around the 10-14 days after vaccine as that is when the seizures tend to occur that are associated with the live virus vaccines. you may want to do your research before you give your child those vaccines again. the next reaction may not end well
It sounds like you did a good job of handling things, but I agree with the ladies that said a call to your pediatrician would have been a good idea. It never hurts to be extra-careful! But I've been in your husband's position too, where I feel like there's just no point in going to the ER, and it's just better to wait it out.
I remember once a doctor telling me that if a child presents at the ER with a dangerously high fever, they would give them a double-dose of motrin. I'm NOT suggesting that you just go ahead and do that, but maybe it's something that you can ask your doctor about.
Also, a friend of mine's pediatrician told her that when a child's fever gets really high, you can put an ice bag under their groin and under their armpits - It helps bring the fever down. (Although since your son is only 15 months old, that may be a little tough to get him to sit still for that!)
My oldest is 5 1/2 years, and by now I've learned not to freak out too much over fevers. They're just the body's way of fighting off illness. But I've never had one go over 105!! I would have been just as worried as you.
Some of my friends believe in spreading out immunizations, where you don't give all of them at once to your child. (Some of the single-shots are actual combinations of several different vaccinations.) Maybe that's something you can consider, too, since your son had such a strong reaction to this one.
I'm glad to hear that his fever broke - you did good! =)
First thing I would do is check the accuracy of your thermometer. I only say that because I had one that wasn't working. It would give us temps way higher than what it actually was. Just test it on him when he's at rest and see if you think the read out is accurate.
Honestly, I don't really think I would have done anything different. I would have let it ride for that day and night. If it hadn't gone down the next day, I would have called the pediatrician. Chances are, they would have just looked at his throat and ears and given him a high dose of Motrin. Our pediatrician has always told us that my kids don't need to be seen unless they have a temp of 104 and it won't come down at all with meds. In addition, they usually recommend that the fever last for more than 2 days. Of course, if there are other symptoms (vomiting, diarrhea, listlessness, etc) they are to be seen right away.
I know a lot of people say that a fever that high isn't "normal" after vaccinations, but that doesn't mean it can't happen. That just means that it doesn't happen to the majority of kids. My youngest is a fever baby. When she gets sick or cuts teeth, her temp sky rockets. It will stay at about 104 and will only come down if I alternate Tylenol and Motrin. In fact, I have to give her the Tylenol first, then the Motrin a few hours later. If I give Motrin first, it doesn't help. Weird right?! LOL!
Anyway...I think you reacted perfectly. I would absolutely mention it to his pediatrician though. You might want to consider breaking up his immunizations so it's not so much all at once.
I think you did ok. Yes, these things are not fun for us moms! I have two little ones that have had it on and off. Beside the tylenol, I was told to give them a rubbing alcohol bath to cool them down. It has worked some of the time.
We were told to give them Tylonal or Motrin right before we left the house for the imunization visit. Helps with the pain and will reduce the fever right out of the gate. Could still have a high temp all night though. And every round of vacinations may have a different reaction. The next time he goes in, he could be completely fine. You did everything you could have after the fever spiked.
I haven't read all of the other responses, but I'll share my experience with this. My daughter was prone to VERY high fevers from the time when she was infant until early childhood. Once, it was higher than Cook's Children's Hospital emergency room's thermometers would go, meaning it was OVER 107.5. She was 18 months old. That time, it turned out to be Roseola, which is impossible to tell until after the fever when the rash appears. (This happened to be Christmas Eve when I had a houseful of eight extra guests and there was ice on the roads. I alone--the frazzled hostess--took my daughter to the hospital very late at night as everyone else went to bed. But, that's another story.) She's 19 now, and there were no lingering effects from her high fevers.
Doctors told me this: if a child's fever gets up to 102, a doctor should definitely be called during the next office hours, but don't wait if it's the weekend.....my kids tended to get sick at 4:00 on Fridays. ;) If the fever gets up to 104, call and speak with the doctor who's on call or go to a clinic. If there are no obvious symptoms, it could be an even more dangerous sign. Infants can't tell you what's wrong. FYI, with all of my daughter's many fevers, they only did a chest x-ray a couple of times, because they were able to diagnose the cause of the fever without it most of the time. Her fevers were never anything serious, until she had appendicitis at age 9. (Adult fevers are not as high, so the alarm bells should go off at lower temperatures than these for grownups.)
The main reason to have the child examined by a doctor is to rule a few uncommon but dangerous conditions that can cause high fevers, such as meningitis. Care Now can do this. If the diagnosis is serious, then you can go to the hospital. Most of the time, it isn't something dangerous, so watching the child carefully is probably okay. But for moms like you and me, "probably okay" leaves us very worried. And, our peace of mind matters, too.
I would check in with Pedi. I've never heard of a fever that high from an immunization. You don't have to make an appointment. You can ask to speak with a nurse to see what she says.
You are fine. Next time you might call your doctor first. I know your hubby meant well but he didn't go to medical school or treat hundreds of kids with vac. I didn't know about the fever afterwards either but I had my son vaccinated right before going on vacation for Christmas. 103 fever for 5 days! Oh what fun....by the way he was just fine afterward. And has been for 19 years!
Thats all you can really do with a fever.
I agree to check on your thermometer. Also - check with your pediatrician about that high of a fever in response to a vaccine.
If my children have fevers that worry me, I call the pediatrician - if its after hours we get the on call doctor, which is fine. He normally chastizes us for using a scanning thermometer instead of a rectal one and then, if the fever is over 101 (?) tells us to five the motrin or tylenol.
Generally, my pediatrician has been remarkably unworried about the fevers that are scaring me to death.
I have never heard of a fever that high from immunization. I think a follow up call to the pediatrician is in order. Just so they can check him over and be sure this fever is not due to something else going on.
Sometimes a scanning or ear thermometer can read high...but next time the fever is that high I would suggest calling the doctor's after-hours line. Also you can give Tylenol and then if the fever is not down and the 4-6 hours have not passed, then you can give Motrin as well (before the elapsed Tylenol wear-off period has passed). My pediatrician told me this years ago b/c my guy got high fevers. You can also get to know your child and a 103 might be his normal fever, while other kids have a 100-101 as a normal fever. This knowledge might make you less alarmed in the future...but 105 is always high! At this point I would still call the pediatrician's office and report your child's reaction...for reporting purposes but also so the office can document this in your child's record. Next time before a vaccine you can also give Tylenol AS you are going to get the vaccine...this might lessen the reaction. Glad that your long night is over!
thats a crazy fever. i've never heard of one that high from vaccinations. normally it's just a low grade. why would the ER take an xray for a fever like that? with a temp that high it actually cooks the brain. too scary for me. my kids go to the dr. or ER if they are running a 102 or so. i would take him to the dr today and find out if there is anything else going on.
I just want to say, my daughter runs HIGH fevers with every vaccination. It is the main reason we are on a selective schedule and only do one at a time, never more. Vaccines are designed to be a one size fits all antibody but as we all know, no two people are the same. I always give tylenol and motrin 30 min before the vaccine and continue to give it at timed intervals until the fever truely breaks.
I would have taken him to the urget care center for a fever that high. If it was 101-102 and that was where it was and stablized, I wouldn't have, but at 105, I would have taken him straight to the urgent care. They may have been able to provide fluids, and or a cooling blanket to make sure the fever didn't cause any other damage.
