Sick Baby - La Jolla,CA

My pediatrician always says to bring a child in if the fever is above 104-105 OR fever for more than 3 consecutive days. I think I'd call in the morning for an appt if the fever is still present tomorrow AM. The co-pay and hassle of Dr appt is worth the peace of mind. If you are giving Tylenol at recommended dosage and intervals, I wouldn't worry. Hope you have a better night!

I would call your pediatrician in the morning. Sounds like she never com-
pletely got over the infection she had. Poor baby. Better to be safe than
sorry.

I've always felt and have always told my friends if you ever feel there's something wrong, call the dr. A phone call is free, and after talking to the dr or nurse on the phone they'll be able to tell you if you should bring your daughter in or if you should wait it out.

Also, if you don't want to give her too much tylenol, you can alternate every 4 hours with ibuprofen. It will help keep her fever down and will keep the tylenol dosage to a minimum.

A.

Here's some things I've learned with fevers and little ones for our visits to the pediatrician. Maybe the information can give you better a better idea of what you should do:

Fevers spike when children sleep.
Anytime you give a child fever reducer, then stop abruptly, the fever will go higher.
Doctors usually don't consider a child having a fever until it reaches 101.

The new buzz word with doctors is "fever virus". Usually they don't get concerned until the child's daily activities or normal behavior is disrupted.

All that being said, I encourage any mother to go with her instincts instead of listening to others. If you are concerned about your daughter, take her and have her checked out. Better safe than sorry.

I would take her back tomorrow morning. Some common infections are tough to knock out with one dose of antibiotics--like sinus infections, because there aren't a lot of blood vessels in the sinus cavity to deliver the medication. And ear infections, because the first dose of antibiotics may knock out the bacteria, but if there is still fluid/water trapped behind the eardrum, the infection will return.

Small children are particularly vulnerable to pneumonia. Also (and I do not mean to frighten you) but whooping cough (aka: Pertussis) has been a declared an epidemic in California. Both Pertussis and Pneumonia are very serious bacterial infections that require specific antibiotics in order to knock out the infection. If you don't get the right antibiotic for those infections, her condition will worsen.

(By the way, even if you vaccinate, you can still get pertussis. Highly contagious. Vaccinating will help ensure its a mild case if someone does get it, but it won't entirely wipe out the possibility that it can develop.)

Absolutely call the DR in the am and talk to the nurse. 102 is too high to go unchecked in my opinion, esp since she was just sick and on antibiotics. It sounds to me like the meds didn't completely knock it out and perhaps another round is needed. No use in her being miserable if she doesn't have to be! Good luck!

Um that doesn't sound ok to me. If she has finished a course of antibiotics and the fever is back the infection is still there. If it is pneumonia a different antibiotic will be needed. Do not wait it out! Call in the am and get her looked at. I hope she feels better! Good luck love.

First, you should make another appointment with your pediatrician. Second, you should buy the baby book, Baby 411. It talks in depth about fevers and when you should and should not give a fever reducer. Remember, a fever is our bodies way of fighting infection. By reducing the temperature, you could be prolonging the infection. However, there is a point at which it is recommended you give your child a fever reducer and the book tells you at what age and what temperature you should be concerned. It has a wealth of other information that I found very helpful when our son was a baby.

have her checked for an ear infection. baby tylenol isnt going to hurt her. you can actually give her double the listed dose and it wont hurt her (my daughters dr told me this!!). also check to see if she is getting teeth in.

Go to the doctor and don't leave until you have answers that you are satisfied with. There is no way to compare children. No disrespect, but your sister has no idea if your child has an infection or if she really is ok. Listen to your gut and your heart and get it checked asap.

M

Sounds exactly the way it used to be with my son when he was little. Sure enough it was ear infections causing his fevers. If the tylenol has not been effective at bringing her fever down, I was informed by my pediatrician to alternate doses of tylenol then ibuprophen. That was a great fever stopper for my son. The only thing that really brought his fever down. I do recommend a follow up appointment with your pediatrician, fever is a sign of infection, and if she has continued after the antibiotics are done, then she should be seen again by her doctor. Good luck with your baby! I wish her well.

this happened(s) to my son, right around the same age, too. he's almost three but i can't remember what i did! funny how when they're sick we just do anything to get through it and it's mostly a blur!
anyway, my thought is that if it's not going down w/meds than to call a doctor. least call in the morning. i definitely don't promote rushing in everytime b/c that's h*** o* you & your little girl, but i do think calling the doc's a gd idea. my little two cents.
btw, i do know how you feel. i hate it when they get sick like that, finish the antibiotics, and they're sick AGAIN. i think, "how did this happen?!"
good luck sweetie, it'll be over soon. :)

Hello, I would call the doctor. This is not normal. Your baby may need another round of antibiotics, or there could be something else brewing. It is not a bother to call and get advice from the doctor's office.
Good luck with your precious baby.
K. K.

Make SURE, she is not getting Pneumonia!

Take her BACK to the Pediatrician, ASAP.
She could have a secondary infection. ie: Pneumonia. Or her illness never went away and is now getting worse.

Pneumonia is very dangerous, even for an adult.

I have had that... which developed from a simple head cold.
And I got symptoms like that. Just like your baby.
I had a head cold. That developed into coughing that would not go away. I then had mucus that got worse, and a fever... and was achy. I went to the Doctor because I also have, Asthma.
The Doc said, I had Pneumonia.
Yep.

Take your baby to the ER.

KEEP in mind, Tylenol is NOT a 'cure' for any illness. All it does is TEMPORARILY reduces the fever. But the fever is still there and WILL return as long as the child is still sick.
Tylenol/Motrin, only 'masks' the fever.

I agree with your sister. Fevers along with coughs, congestions, aches are common. It's nearly always a virus and there's nothing to be done for a virus except to treat symptoms with OTC meds such as you're doing with the Tylenol. You could try ibuprofen. It's better at reducing inflammation. Some recommend alternating Tylenol and ibuprofen.

You could call your doctor's office and speak to the advice nurse if they would put your mind to rest.