High temperature

[Tracyfowler]

Hi all just after advice my 14 month old got temperature of 39.4 and a cough and runny nose he eating a little and drinking but he just not him self and just keep crying I don't know what to do I've given him calpol but don't seem make a difference
Tracy x

how is he now? maybe give some ibuprofen. if you are worried always seek medical advice x

try neurofen for children - you can give both, take off a layer of clothing and just a sheet over. If that doesn't help call 111 for advice.

You should not alternate calpol and ibuprofen routinely. Official advice is to try one and if it doesn't work, switch to the other. If that one doesn't improve the situation then you probably need to take medical advice and they can advise you to alternate if necessary or see you if they need to.

What is he wearing? Is there air circulating? Have you given regular calpol 4 hourly? How long has he had a temperature for? No rash? Breathing okay? Lots of fluids and in loose cotton clothing? If you are worried, phone and speak to a professional.

I am not a medical professional and you should call 111 for advice.

BUT below is the info from NICE guidance on feverish illness in children. Snapshot is

• don't be too concerned about the temperature, look at his overall condition. - If calpol doesn't make him feel better then try ibuprofen instead; you can alternate between the two.
• give hm plenty to drink and check carefully for signs of dehydration; also for signs of difficulty in breathing ( look at his chest and tummy)
• if you are worried call 111

NICE guidance CG160 (home care bit)

• Antipyretic agents do not prevent febrile convulsions and should not be used specifically for this purpose. [2007]

• Tepid sponging is not recommended for the treatment of fever. [2007]

• Children with fever should not be underdressed or over-wrapped. [2007]

• Consider using either paracetamol or ibuprofen in children with fever who appear distressed. [new 2013]

• Do not use antipyretic agents with the sole aim of reducing body temperature in children with fever. [new 2013]

• When using paracetamol or ibuprofen in children with fever:

continue only as long as the child appears distressed

consider changing to the other agent if the child's distress is not alleviated

do not give both agents simultaneously

only consider alternating these agents if the distress persists or recurs before the next dose is due. [new 2013]

1.7 Advice for home care

1.7.1 Care at home

1.7.1.1 Advise parents or carers to manage their child's temperature as described in section 1.6. [2007]

1.7.1.2 Advise parents or carers looking after a feverish child at home:

to offer the child regular fluids (where a baby or child is breastfed the most appropriate fluid is breast milk)

how to detect signs of dehydration by looking for the following features:

sunken fontanelle

dry mouth

sunken eyes

absence of tears

poor overall appearance

to encourage their child to drink more fluids and consider seeking further advice if they detect signs of dehydration

how to identify a non-blanching rash

to check their child during the night

to keep their child away from nursery or school while the child's fever persists but to notify the school or nursery of the illness. [2007]

1.7.2 When to seek further help

1.7.2.1 Following contact with a healthcare professional, parents and carers who are looking after their feverish child at home should seek further advice if:

the child has a fit

the child develops a non-blanching rash

the parent or carer feels that the child is less well than when they previously sought advice

the parent or carer is more worried than when they previously sought advice

the fever lasts longer than 5 days

the parent or carer is distressed, or concerned that they are unable to look after their child. [2007]

It's worrying when they get a high temperature - I posted on here this week about similar symptoms in my 2yo (there was some good advice given too if you want to search it). Basically, I called 111 and there advice was to give Calpol and then ibuprofen if it didn't reduce the temperature, once we visited hospital they said Calpol, 3hours later (or 2 if no improvement) give ibuprofen, then 3 hours Calpol and so on. You can only give 4 doses of Calpol and 3 ibuprofen in 24 hours and this was the best way to control the temperature, there was just one set of hours where we'd run out of ibuprofen doses but still had a Calpol one left. There was a lot of advice out there about not giving medication to control temperature and whilst this is true for mild temperatures, 39+ needs to be controlled. My DS was around 37-38 with the medication which was enough for his body to fight off the bugs without causing damage. However, please don't just take my advice - it's really important that you seek medical advice (111 or GP) and I'd do it sooner rather than later. Don't just start alternating the medicine, wait until they give you the instruction to do so. Q

Make sure your LO has access to water at all times and really push the drinking, even throughout the night. Dehydration can be a serious complication, so just monitor the wet nappies. Don't have the room freezing cold (a mistake I made until so done on here gave me advice) as it just tells the skin that the body is cold, encouraging it to warm up. Just dress in a nappy and have a thin blanket for when the temp reduces.

My DS's temp and cold symptoms lasted a week, he's only just had normal range temperatures today which is a week and a day after they started, he was thoroughly miserable the whole time. The hospital said that a temperature isn't too much to worry about as long as it's for an identifiable reason, such as a virus. If there is any infection the temperature won't be able to be easily controlled so you really should seek medical assistance to make sure that this isn't the case, in our case it was a virus and we just had to wait it out. If it's bacterial then they can give you some antibiotics which will sort it out quicker.

Please come back of you need any more advice, I felt like I was in hell with this earlier in the week and I know how awful it is. I hope your LO is feeling better soon.

Thank you all for your advice He had calpol every 4 hours yesterday then I gave him ibuprofen before bed and he had a good 6 hours solid sleep and temperature back to normal this morning and seem more him self walking round and playing but still got cough and runny nose

Oh I'm glad he's feeling better. Sounds like he's over the worst of it. It's always better to look at the child and not the number on the thermometer. There is no number on a thermometer which 'needs' controlling. Certainly a very high temperature can be a problem but generally, you're talking about a child with other very specific symptoms once you get to that point. A child who is in pain, unhappy, uncomfortable etc should be given medication in the same way you would take it if ill. Some dc can be running around happily with a moderate 39 degree temperature and some can be very unwell with an mild 38 degree temperature. Meds should not be given with the sole intention of reducing fever.

Purple's links to the NICE guidelines above are very good indeed. Follow their advice and if in doubt, seek help.

I really hope he continues to improve.