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Babies on the Brain
Ear thermometer ?
LO has a fever of about 100.3 degrees on an ear thermometer. I can't remember if the ear thermometer gives a higher or lower temp than the actual temp. Should I test her w/ a rectal thermometer? Should I give her tylenol now or wait to see if she gets an actual fever? This is LOs first time w/ a high temp so I don't know what to do. She is acting fairly normal otherwise.
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Re: Ear thermometer ?
I found this here:
Measurement method
Normal temperature range
Rectum
36.6?C to 38?C (97.9?F to 100.4?F)
Mouth
35.5?C to 37.5?C (95.9?F to 99.5?F)
Armpit
34.7?C to 37.3?C (94.5?F to 99.1?F)
Ear
35.8?C to 38?C (96.4?F to 100.4?F)
100.3 is technically not a fever - 100.4 and up is a fever, and this is considered low grade.
Medicate based on how LO looks and acts. Fevers are actually good for us - they kill off the bad things. When we want to clean something, we steralize it by heat, steam or boiling, right? Her body is doing the same thing.
If she's happy and active, try just dressing her in loose clothing, giving her lot's of liquids, and see how she does?
If she's cranky or seems in pain, or if you're not okay with waiting it out, give her some motrin/advil/ibuprofen. It works a little better than Tylenol, but that's my next line of fever defense.
Thanks. Just took her temp rectally and it was 102.1 degrees. I am giving her some liquids and took off her clothes and opened the windows to cool it down in the house. Hopefully it will help.
Linc's temp was 104 both by ear and rectally right before bed, so we decided gave him Motrin. During the day while he was up and around playing it was down to 100-101 so we held off on the meds.
This may be stupid, but is 100 not considered a fever for just babies or is that for adults too? I feel really crappy if my temp is 100, but Linc didn't seem bothered at all.
I think both, however where kids can go to about 104ish without too much concern, adults shouldn't go over 102ish.
Jenny - I think it says because of short tubes or something that temp by ear is not recommended until age 2 because it can give a very inaccurate reading. Which is kind of stupid since all the packaging for ear thermometers have a picture of a baby on them.
100.4 for babies and adults. I feel shiiity with a temp of 99, so when I really have a fever I feel worse.
I don't like tympanic (ear) thermometers because it's easy to angle it incorrectly and get an incorrect reading. Having said that, I've worked in 3 hospitals that use them exclusively. I'm a big fan of rectal temps because they're very accurate. They're not for everyone though. Although I bristle when people complain that it hurts them, that it's gross, or that it will turn them Gay.
Children have a poor ability to regulate their temperatures, so they get higher fevers. Adults tend to top out at 101.5, but certainly can get higher. Dangerously high fevers are rare for adults, usually you won't see a fever above 104 for adults. 106 is dangerous and 108 is fatal. I've only seen a temp >/= 106 twice, once was a seratonin reaction, the other was due to heatstroke during a period of high temps in the city.
When people worry about fevers in kids, they seem to focus on febrile seizures (fever seizures). It's not the height of a fever that creates a seizure, it's the speed at which a temp goes from normal to high. They're scary, but there isn't a good way to determine which fevers are going to skyrocket and which ones aren't.
The best thing to do is watch how they look to you- because you know them best. If they seem to be acting themselves, give lot's of liquids, dress them cooly, and maybe play in the tub. If they seem like they're in pain, certainly try some motrin/Tylenol, and if you're concerned go tot he Dr.