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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Would a temp of 40.4 freak you out for toddler ?

191 replies

hookline · 01/11/2023 21:45

Some people would go to hospital for this kind of temperature.

My boy is 18 months and has had a temperature all day ( no other obvious symptoms).

Temperature was around 38-38.5 all day. I've been giving him paracetamol and ibuprofen. He's been lethargic when his fever was high but when the medicine kicked in, he'd be pretty happy.

Since this evening it's risen quite dramatically to 40.4 just now ( he did sleep on me so it made him hotter ).

He was wrenching a bit earlier, but no vomiting.

I have him medicine an hour ago, but temp has just risen ( but was also sleeping on me ). Anyway it went up to 40.4. I've now taken off his very thin top. His temperature is now 40.

Is a high temperature like this a reason to take them to a and e?

I think if it responds to medication it's probably ok.

Or am I being too relaxed about it ?

OP posts:
ShatteredPeace · 02/11/2023 03:01

Hope he's ok.

scaredofff · 02/11/2023 03:21

Glad you're being seen hope it's not too long of a wait

When things unexplained happen to my ds that I can't rule out myself (I.e a high temp - no reason why) I always seek medical help. They're so small you can't ever know exactly what's going on with them...

Notcookie · 02/11/2023 03:21

Hope he's OK. Glad it's not too busy.

Starlightstarbright2 · 02/11/2023 03:28

Your in the right place at that age better safe than sorry

Missingthegore · 02/11/2023 03:34

I'd add in tepid sponging
I used to spike brutal temps until I was about 14 when I was sick.
If I was sweaty and feeling hot a cool flannel on rotation really helped and then under a blanket when shivering

TrishyLou1111 · 02/11/2023 05:24

hookline · 02/11/2023 02:36

He vomited when we arrived at the hospital

I hope he's okay OP.

Keep us updated x

wishing3 · 02/11/2023 05:33

Poor little thing( and you). Hope you’re safely back home.

Flyhigher · 02/11/2023 05:44

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Flyhigher · 02/11/2023 05:45

Cool water shower. Or some ice on the neck.

Seagrassbasket · 02/11/2023 05:48

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Er, no. That is most definitely not what they do in hospital.

Hope your little one’s ok OP.

YireosDodeAver · 02/11/2023 05:49

Really glad you are at A&E now. Such a scarey thing to happen and little toddler bodies can't shake off bugs as easily as adults so it's very much the right thing to do, even if he ends up bouncing back the A&E doctors would always far rather see a kid who doesn't end up needing significant interventions rather than finding out that a kid got really awfully ill because a mum didn't want to bother them. You did the right thing. Fingers crossed for a positive update after morning rounds.

TeaGinandFags · 02/11/2023 05:52

lizrtasj · 01/11/2023 21:50

Call 111.

This

Gooseysgirl · 02/11/2023 05:53

Glad he is in hospital and being looked after, hope he starts to improve ASAP. For anyone in similar position reading this thread, at a minimum ring 111. Our GPs have always said, if in any doubt seek medical advice immediately via GP/111.

Simonjt · 02/11/2023 05:55

We would, but our daughter has suffered febrile convulsions twice, once on a temperature of 39.3, the other time it was lower 38.2.

minisoksmakehardwork · 02/11/2023 05:58

@Flyhigher - are you a dr or nurse? That's such a dangerous statement to make otherwise. In hospital they have the resources incase a higher dose causes problems. And in my experience, they didn't just double the dose but calculated the exact dose based on the weight of the child.

We had a few hospital stays over the years for a tot with a temperature that just would come down. At no point did they just double the dose.

Original poster
hookline · 02/11/2023 08:46

Hey all. As suspected, they think it's tonsillitis.

They stripped him down as he still had a very high temp when we got there. They then gave him some more pain medicine. I suspect it was a higher dose than I was giving at home. In any case, eventually his temperature went down.

We are home now. Temp is going up again but not as high as in the night. It's still not great at responding to medication quickly for some reason.

Sometimes they have fevers and the fever responds really well and fast to medication and other times it doesn't as much. I'll continue to keep an eye out.

He's on antibiotics.

OP posts:
Youthinkyoureuniqueyourejustastatistic · 02/11/2023 08:53

I think treat the child not the fever.
If they’re normal ish just hot then it’s much less of a worry than if they’ve got a temp of 39 but completely out of it/not playing/not eating/floppy etc.

But I’m not a doctor so try 111 if you’re worried.

MindatWork · 02/11/2023 08:57

You did the right thing OP - my stepsister's DS had a really bad case of tonsillitis a last year and had a convulsion at home because of the fever. He ended up being blue-lighted to hospital because of it, so scary for them all.

Hope your DS is on the mend soon

Scirocco · 02/11/2023 09:54

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Oh dear god no. Please don't do this.

Paracetamol is extremely dangerous in overdose.

There is a world of difference between a medical professional adjusting a medication dose and a non-medical professional deciding to "just double" something.

In order to make safe prescribing decisions, doctors and other prescribers have completed years of undergraduate and postgraduate training, including specific courses on multiple aspects of pharmacology. Telling someone to blindly double a dose without considering the pharmacodynamics, pharmacokinetics, potential for drug interactions, risks of adverse reactions and the patient's capacity to tolerate/compensate for these, and the risks of potentially masking other issues... That's so, so unsafe. Prescribers have spent years training and doing these assessments, so we can often do them quickly, so it may seem like we're just casually going "up it by this" but there's a lot more to it.

Please, never do this. And never suggest it to anyone. That course of action could lead to a child becoming seriously ill and potentially dying. And death from paracetamol overdose is horrible.

Littlecatonthefence · 02/11/2023 10:06

You did the right thing.

Please ( i know you will) keep an eye on him. My DD (aged 2.5) had meningitis and it went on for around 4 days before she was hospitalized for 7 days and an outpatient for 4 days.

She had:

-Temp that could not be controlled
-Very very lethargic as in i would sit her on the couch and she would just lie down, she stopped walking also.
-Constant whimpering seemed in pain

rainbowstardrops · 02/11/2023 10:44

Oh your poor little boy! I'm glad you got him looked at though and hope he's feeling better soon.

Out of interest, are you in the south? We've got storm Ciaran here at the mo and although it's still blowing a hooley, I'm hoping the worst of it has passed now!

Starlightstarbright2 · 02/11/2023 17:02

Glad you got to the bottom of it . Hopefully antibiotics will kick in soon

Original poster
hookline · 02/11/2023 18:12

Littlecatonthefence · 02/11/2023 10:06

You did the right thing.

Please ( i know you will) keep an eye on him. My DD (aged 2.5) had meningitis and it went on for around 4 days before she was hospitalized for 7 days and an outpatient for 4 days.

She had:

-Temp that could not be controlled
-Very very lethargic as in i would sit her on the couch and she would just lie down, she stopped walking also.
-Constant whimpering seemed in pain

Yeah I'm worried something is wrong.

His temp keeps spiking to above 40 today - he's been unhappy all day. He's either crying or trying to sleep.

He's had one half an hour slot where he ate something and seemed better but 95 percent of the day he's been so sad.

The temperature is responding better to medicine than last night, but it does keep spiking.

I took him to the GP today who said his vitals are fine, that it looks viral and to not hesitate to take him back to a and e because she didn't like how he was in himself ( sad and tired ). I'm thinking about taking him back. But not sure.

OP posts:
Original poster
hookline · 02/11/2023 18:19

His vitals were fine when the GP checked this afternoon.

I just can't be bothered to go to a and e again and be told it's a virus and or bacterial tonsillitis and there's nothing else to do, bye bye.

The doc looked at him for a maximum of 2 minutes last night. What else would they need to do to exclude something more serious ?

He's responded really well to his last dose of ibubrofen around an hour ago. His fever was 40.2 and it's not 38.3. He's starting to walk around a tiny bit. Still unhappy but starting to act alive a tiny bit.

OP posts:
Quartz2208 · 02/11/2023 18:21

Then take him back. DS was similar 3 times, once scarlet fever and needed iv antibiotics, one it turned out to be hand foot and mouth and another time they weren’t sure