Temp of 39.8C for 18 month old

[LokiPokey]

My 18 month old had a temp of 39.8 at 7 tonight and we gave her some Calpol. Been a bit off her food but has still been eating, drinking and everything else is normal.
NHS Direct rushed us to a hospital down the motorway, we saw someone an hour later than the appointment and she gave some ibuprofen and took her temp again, it was down to 39.2C.
At this point it was almost 3 hours past her bedtime, she got upset about taking medicine she didn't want. The nurse didn't do any checks for a rash or anything, didn't ask any other questions, just told us to wait for the temp to come down.
She wouldn't give a straight answer when I asked her what we should do if it didn't come down in say 3 hours or by the morning or by Monday.
Just kept saying it needs to come down.

I'm worried and angry and would appreciate if anyone could give me any more guidance on what we should do now.
I'm going to stay up overnight and check her temp hourly, hopefully it keeps going down.
If it stays the same, how long should I leave it before seeing someone? If it goes up, at what point should I take action?

[Allisgood1]

Give her neurofen. Neurofen is much better for high temps. Then alternate every 4 hours with calpol to keep the fever down.

Strip her down and open the windows. No bath, this can cause a seizure if she cools too quickly.

Don't panic. It's a high temp but not dangerous. If it gets higher go back.

Does she have a rash?

[Nannylookingforafamily]

What is the temperature coming down to?

[Nannylookingforafamily]

Keep thin clothes on her, do not strip her off.

A temperature isn't a worry in itself to much, as it helps fight the infection.

What causes a child to fit is if the temperature raises very quickly

[LokiPokey]

We last took her temp at half 9 and it was down to 39C.

She's asleep now in her cot with just a 0.5 tog sleeping bag on and her window ajar, less than an inch and the curtains are pulled together bar a cm. Her room is 25C currently. Is that ok?

No rash. No other symptoms at all.

Thank you for the replies.

[Nannylookingforafamily]

Is her temperature not going down below 39' with meds?

Alternatively do calpol and ibuprofen

[coffeeisnectar]

I'd remove the sleeping bag and just monitor her often. If she wakes, give her a drink. If it starts rising again strip her off and cover with a cotton sheet only. 25 degrees is a bit high for her room, I'd bring it down to 20 if possible.

[Bugsylugs]

I would just put a sheet over sleeping bags keep heat in more.
The level the temp is would not unduly worry me and would not with a child that is alert, no rash drinking well and eating a bit and intermittently interested.
Paracetamol (calpol) can be given up to 4 times in a day and ibuprofen (neurofen , calprofen) can be given 3 times a day.
lol will need more fluid due to temp. Keep an eye out for ear pulling. Any deterioration in how behaving, interest how alert they are. Ensure weeing as normal

[Bugsylugs]

Ideally lol room should be 18. Temperature is likely to last a few days
Home soon on road to recovery

[HeiressesGiltnor]

My son gets temps of 40.3! NHS direct have never rushed us down to hospital and he's 9mo. He's prone to v high temps. We give calpol regularly to bring it down if it goes over 39.

It's scary but remember a temp means the body is fighting something :-) just monitor. I'd do
Nappy and a breathable blanket.

[HeiressesGiltnor]

But of course watch for signs like rashes and limpness.

My DS gets grumpy and clingy when he's got a fever but he's still 'himself'. All be it a pathetic version!

[LittleBearPad]

I wouldn't stress too much. Alternate ibuprofen and paracetamol if she's unhappy. Undo the sleeping bag as she doesn't need it really in 25 degrees.

Remember in the vast majority of cases temps are not dangerous in themselves.

NHS Direct is now 111 and hence pretty useless as the call handlers are not medically trained hence their default position is ooh or A&E.

[TortillaDeMaiz]

fever due to a viral infection can last between 3 to 5 days, it makes little difference if it is 39.2 or 39.8 C. I would just measure the temp every 4 to 6 hours when the meds have worn down. With hot weather it is not possible to keep the room temp at 18C, just dont try to cool it artificially. if her condition deteriorates quickly take her to a&e, if she seems fine i would go to a regular gp to rule out some other illness (ear, uti).

[DeeWe]

Dd2 used to get temperatures of over 41 They also took 3 days of full doses of calpol and ibroprofen to get it down. Never took her to hospital, would only worry if they're not having alert times, she always was. Refusing to take medicine is actually a good sign that they're not too bad, as a really ill child hasn't the strength to refuse.

My GP said she just tended to run high temperatures, and they in themselves are not an issue. In fact many severe illnesses in children, whereas they do cause some raise in temperature, don't cause particularly high temperatures.
Both my other two rarely had anything over 39 degrees.

Thing is, I'm assuming you're thinking of meningitis with comments on rash. The rash (having had a ds who gets a viral rash that doesn't fade) is one of the later symptoms of meningitis. So by the time the rash is out they are very clearly unwell. If they seem not too bad in themselves then I wouldn't worry too much.
A&E found it slightly frustrating that the rash is what people focus on, because it can be too late by the time it's out. Light reaction is a much earlier one to look out for along with stiff neck. Get them to kiss their knee if you can. If their neck is too stiff to kiss their knee then you need to worry.