Fever and...nothing??

Maybe he's cutting a tooth - and YES, while many will argue that children don't get fevers because of this, I will tell you definitively that (especially having twins - what a science experiment) while one son NEVER ran a fever when a tooth came in, the other one nearly always ran a very low-grade fever. Within a week there was a new tooth popping through. So that's a possibility for you to consider.

My kids' pediatrician convinced me years ago that a fever is the body's natural way of fighting an infection, and unless the child is completely miserable (or the fever is very high) that you should NOT be giving them medication to bring the fever down because you may be just prolonging the infection by not letting the body fight it off. The doctor can see things you can't, like the back of his throat and inside his ears. Take him or at least call the doctor.

well mine did that when they were cutting teeth molars especially, no discomfort or anything but it was a sign of new teeth comming in.

Could be teeth if he doesn't already have them all. FYI, my pediatrician (and baby books) recommend against fever reducers for a fever under 101.6 unless it's keeping him from sleeping or eating. Since he seems fine otherwise, I'd stop with the Tylenol and let the fever run it's course.

Hope this helps,
T.

Most pediatricians will tell you he's not even running a fever as anything under 102 is not considered alarming. If he's acting normal and the fever remains low-grade, you shouldn't dose him with anything. If the fever continues for more than a week, I'd consult a physician. It could be as simple as a new tooth or allergies.

I would avoid meds if you are really trying to see what is going on. Meds reduce the fever and then you don't know how serious/not serious the issue is because it has been altered. Additionally, with a reduced fever ( which is the bodys natural defense), the body is less effective in killing off a bug or virus and thus it can linger longer or get worse.... Kind of like trying to get a wet load of clothes dry by putting them on fluff temp... It will take a very very long time and the dryers ideal effectiveness is severely compromised. Do they even recommend Tylenol for under age 5 anymore??

Hi,
Why are you giving tylenol? Tylenol can cause kidney damage when it is over done- and for this there is no need?

The reason that the body gets a temp is to speed up reactions in the body- so if the body challenged then the body heats up a bit to make the immune system's reaction happen faster to protect itself.

Moms have then been scared into lowering it, which undoes the body's attempt to protect itself. No really I know why you gave Tylenol-because the drug companies have spent billions convincing you that you should.

Really the temp may just be the body starting to fight something, w/o an underlying thing to fight yet.

I really like Dr.Bruce West- he has great prcatical advice- find him at Health Alert on line. He offers an education w/o drugs. Also I think every mom would like to have Dr. Robert Mendelson, MD's How to raise children insted of your MD.

best,k

If he is feeling fine I definitely would not give anything to bring it down. The body produces a fever for a reason and it's to get rid of pathogens in the body. If you keep decreasing the fever it inhibits the immune system from doing it's job and the pathogens will remain in the body which may cause other problems down the line. His immune system will be much stronger in the long run if you let it do it's job. Tylenol also decreases one of the most important antioxidants of the body called glutathione which is why some children die after taking it because Tylenol decreases it too much and the body can't function properly.

I would wait 5 days before taking him to the Dr (if the fever stays lowgrade and he has no other symptoms)... this way, if it IS something like an ear infection they'll be able to see it- on day 3 it sometimes doesn't shoe & then you are back in a week again (& by then it's bad). It is very likely his 2 yr molars or something mild/viral if he has no symptoms. Hope he feels better soon!

Well for the fever alternate Tylenol and Motrin every 4 hours (this is safe, I have a 2 year old too and her pediatrician recommended this). Just make sure not to give the same medication more than every 8 hours. Alternating does keep the fever down. It may be allergies. Definitely take him to the doctor. Good luck! I hate it when my daughter is sick too!

Have you looked at his throat? You can do it without depressing his tongue. Use a flash light and play a game. Some sounds result in tongue pushing out of the way. It seems like just having him push his tongue out might work. If he's eating as usual and not complaining and it's a sore throat, it's a mild one that does not need treatment. The only sore throat that gets treatment is a strep infection and that is very painful. He would be complaining.

I've also known of kids and adults running a temperature without having anything wrong. I'd ask the advice nurse before I took him in. If it is a virus as you suggested as a possibility, remember that there is nothing that you can do for a virus.

Since he is in no distress and it's been such a short time, I suggest that it's unlikely that the doctor will be able to diagnose or even do anything for him. After years of experience I go to the doctor less and less realizing at last that they can't know everything and most things "run their course" and are gone.

If his fever is not causing him discomfort, I would not give him Tylenol. Fever serves the desirable function of killing whatever is causing the fever.
Also, babies and children tend to run higher fevers than adults. A fever of 101.8 is not serious.

Talk with the advice nurse.

OMG! I just read this and your update. I was going to suggest strep!!! My kids NEVER show symtoms except a fever.

M.

My son had this a couple of weeks ago. It went away in a day, and a few days later both my husband and I got really sick, but our son never had more than the fever, just that one night.

May be a virus and he's asymptomatic. Some viruses are slow acting. Your body knows it's there and tries to chase it away with a fever, but it may take a few days for they symptoms to appear. When my children were that age and got a fever, 9 out of 10 times it was an ear infection. If he acts and feels ok it's probably nothing serious, but the doctor should be able to tell you what's going on.

Cold be a cold coming on even though you don't see any signs of one. My son was just running 99.5 on sunday night with nothing else and woke up Monday morning 99.1 and a nose bleed. Other than that he was acting fine. Yesterday he started with a light cough but still no runny nose or anything. We've been having bad head colds running around up here and toss tree pollen allergies on top of it and it's been pretty miserable!

I'd stop the tylenol as well. I don't give tylenol unless the temp is over 101 or there are other symptoms that would require it. Unless he presents any other symptoms other than a low grade temp, I wouldn't worry about taking him to the Dr.

Good luck
S.