What could cause a suddden temp spike in a 2 yo?

[Monkeybar]

I heard my 2yo ds moaning a bit in his sleep the afternoon and when I went to check on him he was burning , no covers on, head under his pillow. He has an ear temp of 38.4 (book says ear temp higher than 37.5 is a fever. He was a bit lethargic, but had some calpol at 3.15 and has perked up a bit, although his temp is still high (have just checked and it's 38). So, does anyone know what might be causing this (doesn;t appear to be a rash or anything) and how long should calpol take to bring his temp down to normal?

Chicken pox often starts with high high temp.

Calpol should bring temp down within about half an hour.

FIngers crossed

I would guess virus and that it's etiher mild (so not causing many other symptoms) and/or he's fighting it well.

Ds usually gets like that when ill - usually nothing other than temp, though sometimes it affects his asthma a bit.

If he's perked up I wouldn't worry too much as he obv isn't feeling too bad (Which is good).

Keep giving him calpol and keep eye on him. Take to gp if gets really bad or it lasts longer than 3-4 days.

Is he fluish at all?

make sure he's drinking plenty

Thanks boysarelikedogs (love the name, btw, does that relate to the half an hour run a day?!) Calpol does seem to be starting to get his temp down, will check again when it's been an hour. If it doesn't, I suppose it'll be the dreaded nhs direct!

Thanks all. paula - he doesn't seem fluish and I'm more concerned by the speed of this than anything else - he was fine this morning nad then woke from a nap burning hot. He was VERY thirsty when he woke up, so I will keep his cup well filled. I can hear him chatting to dh, so he's obviously feeling a bit better. Will keep an eye on it and ring gp on Mon if no change.

If temp still high, strip off and try a tepid bath. I also keep a stock of 'ice-pops' in the freezer, just as another way of keeping hydrated. HTH and good luck

< yes mine need a good run twice daily, plus I was bored with my usual boring name >

virus - tends to be cause of most temp spikes in general
add in some nurofen as well as calpol. lots of fluids, cooling fan etc, and keep an eye on him

monkey, i was going to post something very similar about DD, she is also 2 and has for the past few days had a really high temp. This spiked in the middle of thursday night. I am at a loss as to what has caused hers, although she had tummy ache yesterday and soft poo. She is generally miserable, but does seem to be coping so far. I would have thought a virus though. DDs temp was 39.5 so was quite worried, I tend to do calpol and ibruprofen when the temp is really high as it is easier to control, i give the ibruprofen about two hours later or vice verse. Her temperature fortunately has not gone up so high since the first episode. She does always seem to throw high ones though. I always give her medication though if it is over 38. I am taking the watch and wait approach, she does seem to be getting better.

The bath idea is a good one, although i was told by a nurse that the current thinking is to have a bath that is as warm as is safe, as this brings the blood to the surface and then allow them to dry naturally in a warmish room. The reason they say to do this rather than cold towels or tepid bath is that the body will naturally try and bring the temp UP if it is cold so it doesnt maintain the drop in temp so well when dry. If that makes any sense at all - it definately works though.