How many days would you treat a five year old at home with a 39c temp before seeing gp?

[Lardlizard]

He’s had it two days now and s bit of a sore throat before
Coming down a bit with calpol etc to say 38

what other symptoms?

if it's coming down,then what would the dr do?

I’d take him today, his temperature still seems quite high after calpol. Hope he feels better soon.

If it’s only coming down to 38 WITH calpol, I’d try and get in today. Poor mite, hope he’s ok

I am a bit of a worry wort though

www.nhs.uk/conditions/fever-in-children/

"Do
give them plenty of fluids
look out for signs of dehydration
give them food if they want it
check on your child regularly during the night
keep them at home
give them paracetamol or ibuprofen if they're distressed or unwell
Don't
do not undress your child or sponge them down to cool them – fever is a natural and healthy response to infection
do not cover them up in too many clothes or bedclothes
do not give aspirin to under 16s
do not combine ibuprofen and paracetamol, unless your GP tells you to
do not give paracetamol to a child under 2 months
do not give ibuprofen to a child under 3 months or under 5kg
do not give ibuprofen to children with asthma
"

NHS says "What to do if your child has a high temperature
You can usually look after your child or baby at home. The temperature should go down over 3 or 4 days."

so, I'd wait another day and see.
(Again depending on other symptoms)

How is he otherwise? If he’s obviously unwell then I would say GP today. Otherwise not. A raised temperature in itself itself isn’t anything to worry about.

Am not medical but wouldn’t leave it too much longer. Ds had similar temperatures & was clutching his stomach. I took him to GP, worried about appendicitis. That was ruled out and the GP sent him home, saying it was a virus. We laboured on for 4 days with temperatures around 39. Took him back to the GP and it turned out to be pneumonia - sent straight to hospital.

If the temperatures don’t start improving soon or if he's v listless or struggling to drink get some sort of medical advice.

I wouldn’t worry - treat any symptoms and see how he is in himself. I don’t even own a thermometer (well, I may, I have no idea where it went after a house move four years ago), so I don’t worry about a temperature per se. But I would look out for other symptoms and base my judgement on that.

For a 5yo, you are moving out of baby / toddler territory and into the schoolchild zone where you don’t need to worry as much, as they can tell you how they feel.

oddsocks

but NHS says if the child is not distressed and has essentially a cold... then there's no need to go until 5 days.... OPs child has had this 2 days, in which it has come down one degree already.... so over the next day or two it should return to normal (eg around 36-37...)

clutching tummy etc are symptoms of something much worse....not what OP describes at all :/

Oddsocks2 - it was the other symptoms not the temperature that was the issue with your child.

My DC's paediatrician (we live abroad) advised to go in on the third day so they could examine ears, thoat and chest to rule out any secondary bacterial infection.

I reckon I could tell whether my child had a throat, chest or ear infection. In places where paediatricians oversee routine care things are often much more interventionist.

@Bertrand

You may be able to identify a bacterial infection (although I seriously doubt it unless it is obvious or you are medically qualified), but the OP may not.

My friend's DC had 'silent' pneumonia that even her doctor nearly missed.

Yes, diagnosis and treatment (or intervention) is faster here, but I do not consider this to be a bad thing.

Sorry I wasn’t clear it was 39c then after calpol come down to 38c
He was feeling sick but I think that’s just because his temp was 39, He has a bit of a a cough

“Yes, diagnosis and treatment (or intervention) is faster here, but I do not consider this to be a bad thing.“

I do. I worry about the overuse of antibiotics.

My personal 'take them to the Dr' threshold is whether a temperature is coming down with paracetamol or not, so in your case I'd take him as it's only gone down to 38.

What do you expect the doctor to do when a child has a raised temperature and no other symptoms?

I'd probably wait another day assuming he is no longer feeling sick

Well he has got a bit of a cough and the temp is reading slightly higher in one ear
But he says he has no ear pain

Yes no longer feeling sick, he always feels sick of his temp goes too high
Like 39/40
But seems a lot better at around 38

A cough and a temperature then I probably wouldn't go to the GP at all tbh - sounds like a virus, they need fluids and rest.

I do. I worry about the overuse of antibiotics.

@BertrandRussell

It would be down to the GP to decide whether the OP's DC requires any antibiotics and in my experience they prefer to diagnose 'viral' unless there is an obvious bacterial infection.

Prescribing antibiotics where needed is not overuse.

But this was not really the question, but rather whether the OP should take her child to the GP.

...wait a day or so...