fever in baby - what is considered high?

Question

My baby is now 3 months 1 weeks old. She has a slight cold, which is a slight runny nose, sneezing and a light cough. She has had a fever between 99.8 to 100.5 rectally between last night and today. I have a feeling that she is teething too cause she keeps putting her hand in her mouth and sometimes gets frustrated with breast feeding. I will be taking her to the doc tomorrow and i am giving her calpol 2.5 ml every 4 hours when she has a fever. what is considered high fever for babies at this age?

Answer 1

The temperature is not the only thing to consider~a low grade temp w/ iritability should be seen. A temp of 101.5 with a cold and acting normal could stay home. So as I said temperature isn't the only thing to consider. It sounds like she is running a low grade temp b/c of the cold. If she is frustrated about feeding it may be b/c her nose is blocked. Try using otc saline drops to her nostrils. This will loosen the mucus. Use them especially before feeding and sleeping. Also running a humidifier or vaporizer may help a little too. But to answer your question a temperature over 102.5 at this age needs to see her doctor. I see she already going to be going so that's good. Acetaminophen is recommended at this age. No ibuprofen until 6 months of age.

Answer 2

Baby's can get 99.8-100.5 temp with teething and actually a temp of 99.8 is not a fever but the 100.5 is considered a fever. Also don't be surprised if you baby experiences diarrhea due to the teething. Fever is a symptom, not an illness. In recent years, research has shown that many human defense mechanisms and our immune system are helped by fever. Fever is on of the body's ways to help fight infections. By definition, fever is a temperature greater than 100.5 F (taken rectally).

Facts about Fever
The fever that children usually experience in the range of 101-104 degrees are not harmful. A high fever may be defined as one greater than or equal to 105. Fever by itself causes no brain damage or other harm unless it reaches at least 107 degrees. Untreated fevers in children with viral infections, which constitute the vast majority of causes of fever in childhood, do not tend to exceed 105. Most fevers which occur in childhood are the result of a simple viral infection and, if the fever is the only symptom present, the child should be observed for other problems which are more important than the presence of the fever alone.

When to Call about Fever
Your child is less than 3 months old
Your child has a fever greater than 105 F
Your child is acting very sick
Your child is crying inconsolably
Your child is difficult to awaken
Your child has an underlying risk factor for serious infection (sickle cell disease, cystic fibrosis, splenectomy, chemotherapy)
Your child has a stiff neck
Your child is having difficulty breathing
Your child has purple spots on the skin
Your child has a seizure
Your child is confused or delirious

Call During Office Hours If:
Your child is between 3 and 6 months
Fever is between 104 and 105 F
Fever has been present greater than 3 days
Your child has history of febrile seizures

Treating a Fever
Mild to moderate elevations in children do not need to be treated. Children with fevers greater or equal to 102 F often experience some discomfort which can be helped with the use of acetaminophen (Tylenol or equivalent) or ibuprofen (Motrin or Advil). Do not use aspirin. The only time mild elevation of temperatures are important are in any infant less than 8 weeks old with a rectal temperature more than 100.5 - Call immediately.

Once therapy is initiated with acetaminophen or ibuprofen, it is not necessary to continue therapy every 4 to 6 hours is your child otherwise feels well. It is not necessary to wake a child from sleep to give medicine to reduce fever.

Answer 3

Is 100.5 Considered A Fever

Answer 4

My daughter is 3 1/2 month old and has been teething for 3 weeks now. Fever, drool, runny nose, and difficulty eating are all symptoms of teething. She probably has her little fist in her mouth all the time, right?

As far as your fever question, doctors will tell you not to call until the temp is 104 or higher, but my nurse practitioner recommends 102.4 or higher. A 99 temp is pretty normal in a young baby.

Good luck and keep going with your intuition.

Answer 5

High for a baby is 103 to 105, it's not unusual for a small child or abay to spike like that, but that's a nasty fever. 99.8 or 100.5 is pretty typical, especially when cutting teeth. When the temp reaches 102 or higher, give Advil/Ibuprofen at 6 hour intervals and Tylenol in between at 4 hour intervals.

So at the three or so hour mark from giving Ibuprofen/Advil, you give Tylenol.

Answer 6

That's not high enough to be really worried about. It would be good to take her in, though. If it doesn't seem like she is in pain, try to avoid giving her too many meds because they could mask the fever (it may get worse but you wouldn't know type thing). Good luck!