Persistent Fever and Red Spots on Face

Updated on May 03, 2011
M.D. asks from Rowlett, TX
30 answers

Hi Mamas,

My 3yr old ds has had a fever since Friday morning, and today started to have small red spots on his face. I took him to the dr. on Friday and his ears and throat are fine, so the dr. thought it is viral. My ds didn't have red spots then, as they just started showing today.

The red spots are small, like baby acne, to lg. like mosquito bites with no swelling, and they are around his mouth, nose, a few on his cheeks, and one on his ear. It doesn't look like hives.

Does anyone know what this might be??

I will call the dr. tomorrow morning and see what they say...

TIA,
M.

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So What Happened?

I called the doctor's office this morning and the dr. said to fill the Rx that he gave me on Friday (when I first took him the day he woke up with a high fever) since he is still running a fever and he didn't know what is causing or what the red spots are from. So I got his Rx already and we'll see what happens. Right now he is taking a good nap. :-)

Thanks everyone for your input. I appreciate it!

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G.P.

answers from El Paso on

Hi M., just to let you know, my daughter is 7. She started with a fever on Fiday afternoon and by the night time she also had red spots on her legs, ankles, and some on her hands. I gave her Tylenol for the fever and and antioxidants for her immune system and called the Dr. He said as long as it doesn't spread and the fever goes down it would probably be viral. I took her to the Dr. Monday for precaution and good news. She had no infection, so she didn't need antibiotics. It was viral. I am into herbal prevention, I give my kids antioxidants and children's multivitamins daily to get their immune system as strong as possible. It helps!! They even ask for them. Hope this helps.
G.

1 mom found this helpful
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T.C.

answers from Beaumont on

my daughter at one point had high fever with ended with a rash kind of like that. The doctor told me when I brought her in that it was just a sign that the virus was ending.

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L.R.

answers from Austin on

Could be Roseola, my daughter (10 mths) had it 2 weeks ago... very high fever 103-104 for 3-4 days with no other symptoms. She did break out in a rash on the last day, although her rash was mainly on her back, stomach and neck. Some kiddos get a rash after a high fever, so may just be that. Hope this eases some anxiety!

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Z.M.

answers from Louisville on

could be fifth disease. check it out.

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M.P.

answers from Houston on

Hi!!

It could be either allergic reaction (Maybe), heat stroke (doubt), or Roseola(more like it).

Roseola is a viral illness in young children, most commonly affecting those between the ages of 6 months and 2 years. It is typically marked by several days of high fever, followed by a distinctive rash just as the fever breaks.

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V.B.

answers from Houston on

Sounds like Roseola. My daughter had it when she was younger. The fever comes first and then the rash several days later. Your Dr. was right...it's viral and there really isn't anything you can do for it other than to give Tylenol or Motrin for the fever. It will run it's course. She is contagious though until the fever is gone, so be sure to try to keep her as far away from siblings and other kids as possible (easier said than done I know).

You may want to call the Dr. back just to be sure, but it sure sounds exactly like Roseola to me!

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M.F.

answers from Dallas on

Sounds like Roseola or fifths disease. My son has had both. With Fifth's they say the cheeks will have a "slapped" appearance, plus a "lace-like" rash on arms and legs. Also, the fever goes away just before the rash breaks out.

With Roseola, the rash covers more, looks worse, and fever can still persist (though gets lower) after the rash is present. However, the lead-in to roseola is a pretty high fever (104), and runny nose, cold-like symptoms. You don't know what it is until the rash breaks out.

I'd at least call the doc to describe what you're seeing.

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S.B.

answers from Dallas on

You have probably already spoken to the doctor, but with the fever and rash, it sounds a bit like roseola, which I believe is viral. That is about all I know on the subject, but thought it might give you a place to start.

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A.O.

answers from El Paso on

Oh I am so sorry to hear that your little one is experiencing the exact same thing my 18 month old daughter did about a few weeks ago. It began with the fever and then towards the end (about 4 days later, with persistent fever) the spots or blotches appeared first on her face and then traveled everywhere, ie...back, stomach, chest, neck, face and upper thighs. That week we took her to her Pediatrician 4 times since she had persistent fever and the red spots kept spreading. The spots never seemed to pose any discomfort and were basically visual. Her doctor prescribed something for her fever (antibiotic) as well as medication for her allergic reaction - but never did specify what caused or could have caused the reaction. Sure enough with in two days tops, her fever reduced and the spots disappeared completely. So, I know this may not give you any insight as to why or what is happening with your baby, but know that it is viral and can be cured with the proper medication. It was also suggested that if her fever persisted a decathator would have to be used to perform a test on her kidneys, thankfully that was not necessary. Quite odd how the fever and the spots had nothing to do with each other and they also checked her ears and throat like you had mentioned. I hope that your son gets well soon so that you may all rest :)
Good Luck!

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A.K.

answers from Dallas on

My oldest had similar symptoms a couple of years ago. He ran a VERY high fever - 106 - for about five days and then once the fever broke he had this weird rash that I at first thought might be chicken pox or something, but it turned out to be Roseola. I think I have a picture of his rash if you want me to e-mail it to you.

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L.

answers from Dallas on

It could be "hand-foot-mouth" disease, which is a virus. Red spots turn up in those places, usually with a high fever. For sores in mouth you can make up a rinse to relieve pain and swelling. I forget how it is made, but you could call pediatrician for that.
My son had it, and it was heartbreaking because he had a really bad case for 5 days and would not eat. You just treat symptoms and let the virus take its course.

A.V.

answers from Dallas on

My son had the same thing happen to him. The previous Pedi that we had said it was dry skin (totally wrong). Turned out (after taking him the the ER for some blood test that his Pedi would not do) it was a viral infection. I would definitely demand they do a blood and stool sample test to make sure. At the ER they said that it is hard to tell by just looking at the child if it is a Viral infection or a Bacterial infection. Viral comes with a high to low fever and the red bumps everywhere. I think my son's bumps lasted 2weeks before they completely went away. But if it is a Bacterial infection that is serious and you can not treat that with antibiotics (it's deadly if you do). Our previous Pedi gave my son antibiotics the ER doctors freaked out because without a blood test it's hard to tell which one the child has. Needless to say we have a new PEDI! What I've learned is to ask more questions and demand more be done for my child.
Hope this helps.

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N.P.

answers from Corpus Christi on

Your child might be allergic to something. The same thing happened to my daughter when we changed her to whole milk.

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M.I.

answers from Killeen on

It sounds like what my daughter had. She just got over fifth disease. It starts with cold/flu like symtoms and sometimes a fever then a rash type things start popping up on their face then there body...

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S.Y.

answers from Dallas on

Is there a sore throat??? My daughter came down with a sore throat a couple weeks ago and a fever, then broke out in a rash the next night. Took her to the dr and it was scarlet fever!! The strep virus is what causes it and it's going around (strep). My daughter WAS vaccinated against it and still got it. I can go away on it's own after a couple of weeks or in about 5 days with antibiotics. It looks like a sunburn and goosebumps. Kinda like what you were describing was on his face. I would take him to the dr... It's highly contagious.
Good luck!!

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C.P.

answers from Dallas on

Sounds like Roseola to me, too. My daughter had it when she was around 18 months, I think. She ran a high fever of 103-104 for a couple of days, then broke out in a fine, red rash, especially across her tummy and back. The rash didn't seem to bother her, but the fever made her really listless & cranky. It just has to run it's course.

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K.W.

answers from Austin on

You may not want to hear this, but it may be chicken pox. Apparently the vaccine is only 70% effective if he hasn't had a booster (I just found out yesterday). My son (8yo) came down with chicken pox yesterday. Good news is that if they have been vaccinated, it tends to be a much milder case.

Good luck

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J.R.

answers from Dallas on

There are a couple illnesses called Roseola and Fifths Disease where the kids run a fever on and off for a couple of days and then break out in a rash similar to what you've described. But rashes can also come along with something viral like your doc said and it will just have to run its course. Call your pedi though, I'm sure they'll want to see him again.

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E.H.

answers from Austin on

My daughter gets that with a fever too. I think for her it's just a heat rash. It freaked me out at first, but she gets it everytime on her face and the back of her neck and it just goes away with the fever. The doctor looked at it last time and said she thought it was viral, but I'm a little suspicious since she gets it every time.

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K.F.

answers from Dallas on

Hi,
My name is K. and my son just got back from going to the Dr. for having those bumps on his chin and in his mouth, last week. It was fever blisters. Or it started out that way. He gets them every time he has a fever. He scratched them so much that he ended up with Impatigo, and now he's on anti-viral and anti-bacterial meds. So, try to keep him from scratching, whatever it is. Good Luck. Hope he's feeling better soon.

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J.T.

answers from Dallas on

M.,

My two year old just had roseola a couple months ago. He had a fever for three or four days and then a rash broke out. The rash lasted 24 hours and then it was gone and he was a ok. He had it all over though not just on his face. Most kids get it once before the age of 5. Not sure if thats what it is but just thought I'd throw that out there as a possibility. Hope he feels better soon!
J.

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L.T.

answers from Dallas on

I am not a dr but sounds like roseola
L.

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A.P.

answers from Jacksonville on

Google measles, if his throat was sore I would say google scarlett fever which is basically strep with the red spots

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K.W.

answers from Dallas on

Kind of sounds like Roseola to me. Both my kids have gotten it many times. But there is so much going around right now to be sure. Call you doc back and see.

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A.S.

answers from Dallas on

What you described sounds like hand, foot and mouth disease. When my sons have had it, it's been mostly on their feet. It can also be inside a kids mouth/throat. I don't think there is anything that can be done except to treat the symptoms.

I hope your little one is better soon.

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J.

answers from Dallas on

Your baby may have roseola. It's pretty harmless. Just a high fever for a couple of days and a rash soon develops after. When they have the rash, there's nothing you can do. It's not contagious anymore. However, when he had the fever, he was very contagious. My daughter got it from someone else at a daycare. If you find out it is roseola, let everyone who was in contact with your child know (incubation period 7 - 14 days I believe) so they know what to expect. Hope this helps!

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L.B.

answers from San Antonio on

Sounds like Chicken Pox.

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D.S.

answers from Houston on

chicken pox? ask your doctor.

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B.B.

answers from Dallas on

It might be Roseola Virus, it is a common virus in young children. My 4 year old got this last year, she felt fine but had the rash all over her trunk. Otherwise sometimes kids will breakout in a rash at the end of a viral infection, very common and should not be a concern. Hope this helps, you can find more information on the internet.

B.

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M.H.

answers from Dallas on

roseola?

but then, that usually manifests w/a high fever first, nothing else ... THEN red spots later ... and it's viral.

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