what does low body temp mean?? DD 35.5...advice please

[Champersonice]

What does it mean to have low body temperature? My DD (3) awoke saying she was cold with sore throat and stomach pains. She felt cold to the touch. Her thermoscan temp was 35.7 - gave her paracetamol - fifteen mins later temp was 35.5...what does it mean?? She is normally 36.5 and has never been below that. Any advice greatly received.

Because it IS low and is of concern if it's normally higher MrsS.

But if you're a competitive athlete (which dh is), it's nothing to worry about if deemed fine by a doc.

That's a concern I have actually - if my BP went up to say, 130/75 that would be very high for me and I would be worried there was a problem; a MW may be dismissive. Hope it doesn't happen.

"Resting heart rate averages 60 to 80 beats per minute. In middle-aged, unconditioned, sedentary individuals the resting rate can exceed 100 beats per minute. In highly conditioned endurance-trained athletes, such as Olympic cross-country skiers, resting rates in the range of 28 to 40 beats per minute have been reported. Your resting heart rate typically de-creases with age. It is also affected by environmental factors; for example, it increases with extremes in temperature and altitude."

Georgi, you just have to be clear. I told them at my booking appointment what my usual bp was and made sure they noted it.

Thermoscan is one of these www.kaz-europe.com/braun-thermoscan-4520/ and is taken from the ear.

The nurse said that I had done everything right and that a low temp should be treated in the same way as a high temp - giving her paracetamol was spot on apparently.

Anyway, she woke this morning full of beans. They always manage to do that don't they? Worry the living daylights out of us parents and then wake up as though nothing had happened!!

As others have said a low temp is often the same as a high temp, the body fighting something.

Painkillers should be given if the temp is accompanied by discomfort/pain etc.

One of my yoga teachers resting BPM is 29, I have taken it myself as I have all of us who didn't believe her

bogeyface- i've never been ill enough for GPs to take my temp but now i know i need to mention it if i do!

Champers it's reassuring to hear that you were asked about her breathing rate and drowsiness etc.

I confess to feeling rather cross with people talking about their normal adult temp. Champers is asking about a child with an abnormally low temp, which is most definitely something that should be discussed at the very least with a medical professional who knows what other signs to look out for.

It's something that isn't well known amongst parents, but abnormally low body temp in a child can be an indicator of serious illness, especially when accompanied with irregular or shallow breathing and/or cold extremities.

I'm just saying, it's not something that is safe to disregard.

No it isnt something that is safe to disregard in a child who normally has a normal temperature.

Myself and the other posters were merely pointing out that a low temp isnt neccesarily indicative of illness if it is your normal temp and can actually cause problems in its own right of misdiagnosis of problems.

Hey, Zeno and Bogeyface (great name by the way!), thanks for posts.

You are both right - it isn't something that should not be disregarded and that is why I sought professional advice last night and called NHS Direct. If I hadn't been entirely happy with the outcome I surely would have taken my DD to A&E. Thanfully, it didn't get to that.

Btw, it was the fact that her temp was very low - she has never gone below 36.5 in the past. I have quite often dealt with the opposite and have had her temp hit 40 - and at five weeks old so was admitted to hospital

At one point, the thermoscan read 34.8 but I quickly ignored it as I think I had incorrectly placed it in her ear. Also, the previous reading was 35.2 and when I did it again, it read 35.2. But my heart did miss a beat or two, I can tell you!!

You will find that if your child's skin feels warm then they are probably ok. Thermoscans are slightly unreliable as in if they need new batteries they read incorrectly. Anyway I am glad all is well

And hey Zeno, I am a medical professional

You will find that if your child's skin feels warm then they are probably ok. Thermoscans are slightly unreliable as in if they need new batteries they read incorrectly. Anyway I am glad all is well

And hey Zeno, I am a medical professional

Thanks, Lula. Indeed the back of her neck was warm so that made me feel instantly better about the whole thing. As for the thermoscan, what to do because I tested it on me and it showed a normal temp?! Should I just disregard it in that case? Modern technology, eh??

My DD does this when she has infections too. She'll be up at 39 one minute and down to 35 the next. It really worried us the first time it happened because she screamed uncontrollably about it too. My sister who is a nurse told me that when people are hypothermic they can feel as if they are burning up and be in dreadful pain which may be why she was so distressed.

Every time it has happened since then I've snuggled her up and breastfed her to make her comfy as quickly as possible and she usually warms up within a few mins.

So yeah another vote for normal but also heartstopping the first time it happens!

Also make sure that you either use a new cover or give it a good clean. When you put the probe in her ear, hold the top of her ear and pull upwards. This opens the ear canal. Don't be afraid to push it in the ear canal so it is snug. Try your own how you have been doing it and then try it with your ear pulled up. See if there is a difference.

Thanks for tips, Lula!

I've been told too that if you don't have a thermometer to hand, it's better to use your lips to feel the temp of your child rather than your hand, as hands can often get cold or hot and affect the temp of the child you're feeling whereas your lips are much less likely to fluctuate temperature wise (hot/cold food/drinks excepted!)

Does seem to work quite well - especially if you touch your lips to their forehead to feel the temp.

If I use my hand I never use my palm - always the back of it. Although, I do believe that the tops of the fore and index fingers are what you should use. I am sure Lula can advise on this one.

I tend to put my hand under dd's arm pit. This gives me a good idea of how hot they are. I find that if it that burns my hand then they are generally too hot. In a medical setting then just use a thermometer. I worked in the middle east for two years and there we took all children under two's temperature rectacly. This is the gold standard in anybody but most parents don't like the thought of it. Same goes for rectal paracetamol. Works really quick for most drugs.

My Body temperature taken daily orally can be anything from 35.4 - 35.6 36.3 36.7 and all of these are perfectly normal, only when your body temperature rises above the 38c or below 35 should you really be thinking about seeking medical advice , i'm sorry to say this but there are far too many people who comment and scare others not knowing the true facts.
I am disabled and bed bound most days and take my own blood pressure & temp every day about 4 times a day so I know what to look out for & when I should be thinking about calling the GP as I find far too many people go to the GP unnecessarily nowadays & waste time & money.
Sorry but just my opinion.
Ms Windsor

My eldest son had a temp of 33 degrees when he was four days old (he was very seriously ill and unresponsive) docs said a virus can make it drop. In his case it wasn't a virus but that can be the cause.

I know this is an old thread but just in case anyone is searching, this is important issue when affecting children .

One of the previous posters may have been referring to Hypothyroidism.

A low body temperature is a sign of Hypothyroidism as is cold extremities.

Yes in babies and very young children a rectal thermometer is good but older use a digital one orally. Use it first thing in the morning as they wake, before they get out of bed and last thing at night just before getting into bed.

Do this for a week and take the mean temperature.

If the child is at puberty and has severe menstral problems + low temp + cold extremeties it is a safe bet that they are Hypothyroidal.

DO NOT TRUST the NHS on this. Google experts and USA sites.
Find an NHS doctor who is open to learning and helping.

This does not mean your child has Hypothyroidism, many symptoms fit my diseases/ situations.

Absolute action DEMAND attention, the younger the child the greater the demand.

Just read this as my older son, Markus, 8, is currently going through tonsillitis.

He's taking antibiotics and an allergy med and has been jumping from mid 36.x to 39.5 all weekend and I've been using Kids' Advil(grape ) to help regulate his temperature whoever it'd hit 39.
Both my boys general body temp ranges from 36.5 to 38.5. Mines a pretty steady 38.1 to 38.5.

It's now 4:35am, Monday.
His temp took a sudden drop to 35.7 at 2am and he was cold all over, so I watched him for an hour, checking temp every 15 minutes. At 3am, he tested 35.2, so I bundled him up and snuggled for an hour, checking temp every 20 minutes or so. Each time, he warmed a point or two till 4am, when his temp showed 36.2.

Dealing with this has been a bit of an erratic anxiety attack, but reading through this post was definitely of great help.

I know it's an old thread, but it's a helpful one for general reference.
Just thought I should mention that you should know your child's general, day to day vitals as it helps in dealing with stressful times in their health and can be imperative in case that can be more extreme in nature.

I think that being so in-tune to my boys, coupled with reading forums like this one, really helped me to deal with this situation quite a bit.

If you, for whatever reason, are not in-tune to your child's daily vitals and something like this happens to you, I'd still recommend maintaining a cool head and seeing a doctor as soon as possible.

Thanks to Champ and all other contributors as you have really helped get me through the night.

It's now 5am( I live and work in Taipei Taiwan) and he's been at a steady mid 36.x for an hour.

Time for a nap.

Assuming all is well tomorrow, I'll reward myself with a glass or two of the Justino's 5yr old port that I've been neglecting since I bought a few months ago.

Night-night~

-Nam

Serious endurance athletes do often have a very low resting heartrate.

When DD went for her "hello, how are you" appointment at the start of uni, the doctor looked at her and said "do I call an ambulance or are you extremely fit?" Her resting heartrate is below 40.

I'm jealous as mine goes over 90 if I consider standing up :)