Baby's has a temperature of 39.4•

[oyoyoy]

I don't know what happening to my little fella (10 month old) but since yesterday, he's had a very, very high temperature and has been really, really poorly- at one point I thought he was having febrile seizures. Took him to the Paediatric A&E unit where they monitored him for 4 hours and then sent us home. Calpol doesn't seem to be touching the fever- the only medicine to help was ibuprofen at the hospital (which we don't have at home). Yesterday's hypothesis by the Dr was that baby may have a UTI but we struggled to collect a urine sample from the baby.

He's EBF and is having regular feeds, has gone off any food, he's weeing normally I think but has very loose stools. I've just a cold compress in an attempt to lower his temperature as well as placing a fan in the room to cool him down (facing away from him). I've just called A&E and spoken to someone there and they've asked me to keep baby st home and monitor him for any changes and said if he'd been discharged earlier from their department then they had no serious concerns.

I suffer from anxiety though and can't help but feel something bad will happen :/ has anyone faced anything similar?

Is there anyway you can get hold of some ibuprofen? It's the best thing for getting temps down and you can alternate it with calpol.

Suggest you get your partner, friend or self to a pharmacy for baby ibuprofen if that helps as you can alternate with calpol paracetamol.

My baby had a high temp and just had a virus of some kind, it passed within 48 hours. But it was worrying.

If you need a urine sample in future they have specific bags you can tape onto the baby to help, or just a bowl on your lap with baby in it as you feed them.

Don’t use coldcompresses. They cool the skin which will make the body try to warm up so won’t help the temperature.

If ibuprofen helped yesterday then you need to get hold of some of that. Either nip to the shop or send someone to grab some

Get some ibuprofen and alternate with paracetamol, if you do them on a 3 hour schedule it's 6 hours in between does of each medicine but its a good overlap to help keep the temperature down. So,
Ibuprofen at 6am
Paracetamol at 9am
Ibuprofen at 12pm
Paracetamol at 3pm

Keep baby cool by having him just in a nappy until his temperature drops. Don't worry about food but bf as much as possible to keep him hydrated. If you're still worried take him to the Dr's today, I've been I a and e with my dc a few times and things have been missed and we've had to be rushed in again later.

But also remember a temperature isn't a bad thing, it's his body fighting bugs and doing what it should.

Hope he's better soon.

You don’t need a pharmacy for the baby ibuprofen any large supermarket should have it and you may even be able to get it in a local small supermarket.

Hope he’s better soon.

Thanks everyone- he's usually a spirited baby who's always on the go so seeing him lethargic and hearing him whimpering is really distressing. DH has gone out for some Ibuprofen- I was surprised at how quickly it worked yesterday. We got back really late from the hospital so didn't get a chance to get some last night.

@MrsGrannyWeatherwax- the baby perked up after the Iboprufen almost as soon as he was given it and spent the rest of the time at the hospital playing. We were asked to stay in until we'd collected a urine sample- for that alone, we spent an additional couple of hours at the hospital! The Paediatrician even came in at one point and did a massage of sorts to get the baby to wee but nothing worked. I did ask if there was anything to attach to his nappy but she shook her head :(

Erm, I would go back if there's no improvement tbh. Follow your gut with this. That's a really high temp. See if the ibuprofen works but don't hesitate to go back if it doesn't work or you feel he's getting worse. What's your gp surgery like for emergency appointments? Because you could always try and get him seen there today too.

Hopefully he'll be on the mend soon.

@TheBabyAteMyBrain - I'll be following your timings re: alternating the medicines but in reverse as baby's already had paracetamol.

Hoping the virus passes soon. His nappy is nowhere near as wet this morning so I'm a bit worried he's not been having feeds but just comfort sucking- will keep an eye on that :(

I had a similar situation in A&E a year ago when they we waited hours trying to get a urine sample from DS for those symptoms. In the end I took him home. They suggested trying at home and taking the sample to the GP once successful.

But yes, as other posters have said I always use ibuprofen for baby and toddler temperature (as it works better) and alternate with calpol to try to keep it from going too high.

Our GP's surgery will refer us to the walk-in centre @DonPablo, where we'll most likely wait hours and then be referred to A&E- that's what happened last time so I'd rather head to A&E with a young baby myself. Will go in again if anything changes.

Will he sip water to keep him hydrated too?

Definitely go back if you're really worried.

That said, DS's nursery has had a virus going round that sounds similar - he caught it and had temp of up to 40 degrees, sore throat and loose poos.

He was much better within a few days, we just kept his fluids up (very important by the way!) and have ibuprofen and Calpol as necessary.

Will he take water on a spoon or using the syringe from the calpol if you’re worried about dehydration? But also keep up the breastfeeds as this is excellent for sick babies as so easily digested. My DS had something similar last week, calpol didn’t bring temp down but ibuprofen for children did.

If you’re worried about fluid intake, can you express a bottle or so for him? Then syringe feed, cup or bottle to get him to have increased fluids. My baby was only 3 months when she got her virus and I ended up feeding 2 hourly but she wasn’t being effective so needed it pouring into her basically.

Sorry I haven't updated. Baby's temperature is currently around 37 degrees- much lower than before but he still feels hot to the touch and grisly. He won't let me put him down so we're just having lots of cuddles. He's also spent quite a lot of time sleeping which I'm hoping is a good sign re: recovery.

He's having a few sips here and there of water but mostly just wants the breast- comfort of otherwise, I'm happy to oblige. I wanted to take him out so he'd get some fresh air but perhaps today should just be an easy home day for the both of us.

Glad to hear your little one is on the mend. My son (now 20 months) has had a few viruses like that- one required hospital admission for 7 days and was horrendous. Likewise with us only ibuprofen works, calpol literally does nothing for his temperatures. Just wanted to add double check the dosage ibuprofen as you can't give it as often as paracetamol (every 6-8 hours and max 3 doses per 24 hours usually).

Hope your little one continues to improve, it's horrible seeing them poorly x

Hi OP, hope your little boy is recovering. Just to say my baby had a diagnosed UTI over Christmas and it was exactly as you described. I was so so worried about him he looked so unwell. I am pleased to say that he perked up in a few days and was back to normal after some antibiotics. It was really horrible to see him so ill. He slept a lot and bf a lot for comfort too. Wishing your boy a speedy recover x

My 11 month DD2 is going through this OP, it’s so horrible to see. No temp now but she’s not 100%, she’s very tired, wants to be held/cuddled, isn’t interested in food really only here & there so trying to keep her hydrated as possible. .

Thanks all for the well wishes. Last night was really, REALLY tough. Baby just wouldn't sleep or settle and wanted to be held and rocked and then when I did that, he'd cry relentlessly. Clearly in pain. When he eventually fell asleep past midnight- usually bedtime at 6:30pm- he stayed latched on and fed through the night. Today he's been a little better- temperature has averaged 37.8 but he's still wanted to be held most of the day. I managed to take him to a playgroup in the morning and for a walk in the afternoon- he perked up briefly when on the swings but then wanted to rest his head on my shoulder (this NEVER happens normally) on the way home. He's still refusing food, has very runny poos and is grisly as anything.

I'm exhausted (am in my first trimester with baby number 2 and have HG) and I feel awful because I raised my voice with him a few times out of frustration earlier this morning. DH is at work from 7-7 and I'm feeling really overwhelmed. I'm continuing to monitor baby's temperature and overall behaviour- I'm hoping he has a virus that'll go in a few days time.

I hope you have a better night. I think you should keep him at home while he is obviously still poorly, it’s not the best idea to expose other children at playgroup to whatever virus he has.

Ps. I've only just come across Ibuprofen- it works like magic. I can't believe I've not known about it before.

Also, for those with babies who have had UTI, can I ask if they were diagnosed via a urine sample only or via a scan? I feel the Paediatrician when she said we could leave, was quick to discount a UTI even though the registrar before her was adamant it looked likely it was. The only reason we were discharged was because baby refused to wee for the hours we were there (we tried massaging his bladder area and applying hot and cold compresses and then the Dr did some firm massages to get the baby to wee but nothing worked). Wondering if I need to go in again and ask them to investigate further until we know for sure either way- is hate for baby to suffer with an unresolved UTI in the mean time :/

@Jimjana- you're 1000% right. It didn't even cross my mind. I was so desperate to get out of the house, it didn't even register that I'd be potentially spreading a virus to others :/

I know it’s easy to go stir crazy. A walk in the fresh air is good, but best to avoid places with other children. I’d try and get a GP appointment if there is no improvement over the next day or two

My dd had this when she was about 2.5yo with convulsions. I ended up phoning an ambulance as she was really deteriorating and had blue lips too. As well as Calpol and ibuprofen they also gave her biscuits and apple juice as her blood sugar was very low. Obviously you're not able to test DS's but you could try giving him something sweet to see if it helps.

The doctors also thought my DD had a uti but couldn't get a sample. Have they asked you to keep trying? We were asked to keep trying. In the end after about 4 days she was given antibiotics and it cleared up fairly quickly after that. If you do need to get a sample you can hold an ice cube for a while just above his genitals and he should do a sample.