Fever in Toddler - Take 2 - Red Lion,PA

I can't really offer any new advice, but I can offer support. If you aren't comfortable with a doctor's diagnosis, go get another! Doctor's are human, make mistakes, and don't know everything. I have learned to question doctors after I was told to do the completely wrong thing with my son, but that is a different story. At the very least, you should not be brushed off when you take her in for the fevers.

Whatever the cause, I hope she feels better soon.

Girlfriend going through exact same problem. Nothing came up in the bloodwork. This past week, tested for tonsillitis (I believe it was a swab test, but don't hold me to that) and it came up positive. From what she said, it's recommended some kids have their tonsils removed as they keep getting infected. Worth a shot.

I'm sure your situation could be a lot of different things. I pray you can figure it out for your own sanity and for your daughter's sake...but here is my experience:

My son kept getting a fever and breaking out into hives at random times. We couldn't figure out what it was, and we thought it was a food allergy (he was under 2 years old and hadn't had peanuts yet, but had been eating things that were processed in a facility with peanuts). So, we went to an allergist and they skin tested him for the peanuts...but they also skin tested him for cats (his weekday babysitter has a cat, and my husband is very allergic to cats). So, much to our surprise, we found out that my son wasn't allergic to the peanuts, but was allergic to the cat. The doctor explained to us that because our son was constantly fighting the cat allergen in his body, he was more prone to react to other viruses because his immune system was working overtime against the cat. That's why when he was being exposed to other random viruses, he was having such a strong reaction (fevers and sometimes hives). It was so weird because he wasn't showing any signs that he was allergic to the cat (sneezing, watery eyes, hives every day when he was with the cat, etc.)

Just something to think about...

I have not gone through this but I suggest finding new doctors but that doesn't sound normal to me at all. If that happened to my children at any age I'd be more than concerned myself and would be seeking other opinions from other doctors. A fever means the body is fighting something off. If there's something the child is constantly fighting off, the cause needs to be found and dealt with. Seek other doctor's advice.

K. B
mom to 5 including triplets

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Dear T.,
How awful for you & your daughter!

Not having any medical background my only pieces of advice are: find another doctor who WILL listen to your concerns; I really like Dupont's children's hospital in Delaware- I think they are fabulous when it comes to specializing in children's needs. Secondly, I would request a Lyme's Disease test and as other posters have said a kidney test and an Epstein's Barr test(if there is such a thing).

As many have said before, if it is a concern to you. Keep pushing those doctors to work for you rather than dismissing your fears. I hope for all the best for you, your daughter and your family.

Fondly,

Ann m.

when you take her to the doctors are they just looking at her or testing her also? I would ask for the standard tests - strep, etc. If they are negative then you need to speak about a couple others to start solving this problem. Find a doctor that will listen that you are concerned because this has gone on for so long.

Hi T.,

I was going to say definitely get another opinion but I see that you have taken her to several dr's. I do not have any personal advice but I do think that it sounds important enough to not just allow the "it's a virus" excuse pass and move on. I think that they need to do more extensive bloodwork, it is not ok for your daughter to have to deal with this on a regular basis, something seems to be going on that they haven't uncovered yet. Keep being strong and pressing the issue and I will say some prayers for an answer.

L.

You know something isn;'t right so press the dcotors to take blood test and do a urine alyasis. IF they refuse then go to another doctor willing to listen and help you. Doctors work for us and we do not have to accept their diagnosis. we know our kids best so we know when something just isn't right.

Keep pushing for an answer

I am so sorry you are going through this. I will add to what others have said, you need to be an advocate for your child. The Dr.s see many patients and don't live with you or your daughter so they can't know her like you do and if you know there is something wrong, push them. If you have seen may Dr.s I suspect they have done basic workups like CBC and UA. If they have not, i would first demand those, if they have then move on to more specific tests. Not having a medical degree I wouldn't know what to look for, but usually fevers mean infection, however if it is truly something viral antibiotics will not help, but if it is bacterial they will. What about lyme disease? I had that, with persistent fevers for a year before I was diagnosed. Also the lyme test can be wrong, so if that is suspected I would look into treatyment for it just in case. Really I have no idea what it could be, but that came to mind along with urinary infection which often shows no signs other than fever. Good luck and keep us updated!

Hi T.,

Call your Doc and ask him to refer you to have a second opinion. Good luck. D.

Has the doctors run any kind of blood test? I would be demanding that they run more tests or take her to another doctor. You need some answers and if the doctor is not providing them, then I would say take her to another.

Have you had her evaluated for a urinary tract/bladder/kidney infection? When my kids have unexplained fevers, that's usually what my doctor thinks. Hopefully you can get her to pee in one of those upside down hats, rather than having to have her catheterized (to take a urine sample - catheterization can CAUSE urinary tract infection, anyway).

Before I would allow a catheter, I'd ask my doc if we could just TRY a course of antibiotics to see if they help.

Good luck,
A. @ http://prettybabies.blogspot.com

Hi T.,

If this is continuing the Ped. should do a blood work up. When my son was 18 months. He kept running a fever spiking in the afternoons. He had no symtoms. Finally I took him to the Ped. They took a blood sample and said he had a bacterial infection.The Dr. sent him for a chest x-ray to rule out pnuemonia.Well it was bacterial pneomonia.
A simle blood test will let you know if it is bacterial. Otherwise it could be viral.But after 3 months?Find another DR.

My son will be 4 this coming February. I went thru the same thing 104 temp at night for three days every two weeks. His dr would proscribe antibiotics say he's fighting an infection. I took him to an allergist and found out he was allergic to multiple things that were triggering his body to think he has an infection and fight it like he had one with the fevers. Once I took everything he was allergic to away; cats,eggs, dust, polyester, mosquitoes,. His fevers have stopped. He takes an antihistamine everyday to help. I was very sad to see my cat go be I hated seeing my baby boy be so miserable every two weeks and to think about what it was doing to his body. We went to a friends house for dinner one night, they have a cat, he did not touch the cat. The next day he got his fever for 5 days this time, he hadn't had a fever in almost 6 moths after I found out what he was allergic too. I hope your child gets better I know how you feel.

i don't know if this will come through as i can't see it, but have them do a urinalysis and culture. my daughter had the same thing and was diagnosed and hospitalized for 4 days with a kidney infection.

Hi T.,

Don't get offended, but maybe you should consider finding another doctor. Her fevers are getting into seizure territory when they hit the 104 and 105 mark. My 3 year old son gets high fevers like that when he gets an ear infection, but they're at least explanable.

T.

I dont really have much advice for you, except to hang in there because youre not alone. My son, who is now almost 14 months, has fevers almost like clockwork once a month. His fevers started when he was 4 months old. Theyve done blood work, urine tests, xrays, everything and EVERY time it comes back to nothing. The docs always tell me it sounds like a virus, but I know its something more. He has no other symptoms with his fevers. The highest one he's had was nearing 106. We've been to the ER quite a few times. I know that its scary not knowing what is wrong with your baby. I deal with it too every month. Those docs are so quick to chalk it up to a virus, but they arent the ones holding a poor, hot, miserable baby in their arms everytime one of the fevers spikes. I have looked into PFAPA also and think that it could possibly be why my son gets fevers too, but like I said, he also has no other symptoms.
If you ever want to talk to someone who knows what youre going though or need a sympathetic ear, please, feel free to send me a message.

Good luck to you and your sweet baby. Hope it helped your sanity a little, knowing youre not alone in this.

Jen

Have they checked her for Lyme's Disease? I've had it three times and had no bulls eye. I live in PA too and it's a hot bed for ticks.

Ive heard of this on the Kidshealthsupport.com/forums/
maybe you can find it in their search engine?

Hugs! It must be h*** o* you both.
I too am fed up with docs over my sons medical issues and find a TON of support on the board I mentioned, please check it out. :)

When my daughter was 12 weeks old she spiked a fever (sorry I don't remember what it was since it was 5 years ago) but it was high enough for the ped to send us to the hospital. She had no other sypmtons. The hosp took both blood and urine cultures but we had to wait 24 hrs for the results and the sent us home.

24 hours later a policeman shows up at my house telling me I have to bring my child back to the hospital because the cultures came back possitive for an infection but hadn't been identified yet. The reason for the cop showing up? When the hosp tried to reach me by phone and couldn't they call the police to go to the house. It really freaked me out.

Anyway, long story shorter, she had an infection in the small tube between the kidney and bladder. It has an actual medical name but I cannot remember what it is. The only way they found it was when they did an ultrasound. She was in the hosp for a week on antibiotics around the clock. She never had a re-occurence but if it had not been found it would of shut her kidney down. Apparantely, this is common in girls.

Definitely take her to get these cultures done next time she has a fever. We took our daughter to Virtua in Voorhees and they handled everything wonderfully but you might also want to try CHOP, who I also highly recommend. Good luck.

I have a friend whose 15 month old daughter has this same problem. They have said it's a 'fever virus' that she cannot get out of her system for whatever reason. She's had 3-4 episodes of it, and it started when she was around 7 months. She's had bloodwork to look for all sorts of conditions but this is the only diagnosis they can come up with. She now keeps a journal where she writes down temperatures, and also how her daughter is acting (lethargic or normal, because sometimes the fever will be around 103 and she'll be playing like she feels fine).

I am a worrywart when it comes to fevers...because if a fever gets too high, you can have a seizure. And once you have a febrile seizure, you are more susceptible to them the next time you have a fever (at least this is what I've been told).

I would insist on bloodwork...not sure exactly what...but with my friend's daughter, they did the CBC, they checked her red and white cell counts...they were trying to rule out more serious medical issues...

There's an infection looming in there somewhere...because that's why we get fevers...to fight off infections. Try to keep a log to see if there's a pattern. Also keep in mind that fevers do tend to spike at night (there's a reason for this but I can't think of it at the moment).

I wish you luck and I hope your little one feels better soon...it's so scary being a mom sometimes!

I agree with everyone else - don't sit by until you have all of your concerns addressed.

The first thing that came to mind when I read your post was autoimmune type disorders and blood disorders. I have family members with rheumatoid arthritis, IBD/Crohn's Disease and leukemia so those immediately came to mind. I'm not saying I think your daughter has those diseases. In fact, there are MANY other symptoms associated with them that you don't mention. But I think the recurring symptoms over a long period of time made a connection for me. If it were me I would consider contacting a rheumatologist and hematologist.

I also found reference to cyclic neutropenia (or some similar name). I don't know anything about it, but the neutropenia suggests low immunity, so a person who is neutropenic is more susceptible to getting sick, which is obviously a concern. Here is the site I found it at. http://www.aafp.org/afp/20030215/tips/25.html

Best wishes to you and your daughter. I hope you get some answers.

I hate to ask what may sound like a simple question, but is she cutting molars? I know my ped always said they don't run fevers when they cut teeth, but all 3 of mine DID.

Just a thought. If you feel it is more serious than that, then keep talking to the doctor and try different doctors if you must. Best of luck!

M.

I went through a similar situation with my daughter. Have they tested for Epstein Barr? It took me taking her to Children's to see Infectious Disease doctors to get the diagnosis. I agree with most of the responders, make sure they're testing and not just looking.