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Patient education: Fever in babies younger than 3 months (The Basics)

Patient education: Fever in babies younger than 3 months (The Basics)

What is a fever? — A fever is a rise in body temperature that goes above a certain level. In very young babies, a fever means a rectal temperature above 100.4°F (38°C).

This article is about fever in babies younger than 3 months old, including newborns.

How should I take my baby's temperature? — The most accurate way is to take a rectal temperature (figure 1). Armpit, ear, and forehead temperatures are not as accurate in young babies.

What causes fever? — The most common cause of fever in babies is a viral infection. This is most often due to:

A cold or the flu

An airway infection, such as croup or bronchiolitis

A stomach bug

But in some cases, fever is caused by a bacterial infection. This can be very serious, especially in young babies, and needs to be treated right away.

Should I take my baby to see a doctor or nurse? — Yes. You should take your baby to a doctor or nurse if they have a rectal temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher. This is important even if your baby looks normal or doesn't seem sick.

If you can't take your baby's temperature, but they feel warmer than usual, call the doctor or nurse. They can ask questions and decide if your baby needs to be seen.

Will my baby need tests? — Maybe. Your baby's doctor will probably do tests to check for a bacterial infection if your baby seems sick, is younger than 2 months old, or has a very high fever. This might involve blood tests, urine tests, or other procedures.

Should I treat my baby's fever on my own? — No. Do not give fever medicines to a baby younger than 3 months unless a doctor or nurse tells you to. This includes acetaminophen (sample brand name: Tylenol) and ibuprofen (sample brand names: Advil, Motrin).

Also, you should never give aspirin to a baby or child younger than 18 years old. Aspirin can cause a dangerous condition called Reye syndrome.

How are fevers treated? — It depends on what your baby's doctor thinks might be causing the fever. After doing an exam, the doctor might give your baby antibiotics, even if test results are not back yet. Antibiotics are usually given as a shot or by IV (a thin tube that goes into a vein).

Antibiotics only work to treat bacterial infections. But since bacterial infections can be very dangerous in young babies, doctors often give antibiotics right away (even before they know for sure if an infection is viral or bacterial). Also, some viruses increase a baby's risk of getting a bacterial infection, too, and antibiotics can help prevent this.

Your baby might need to be treated in the hospital if they:

Look or are acting sick

Are younger than 1 month old

Have abnormal test results

Have certain other health problems

In some situations, like if your baby is more than 1 month old and not acting sick, the doctor might not give antibiotics right away. In that case, they will probably want to see your baby again within 24 hours. This way, the doctor can examine your baby again, and review any test results, to see if any treatment is needed.

More on this topic

Patient education: Fever in children (The Basics)
Patient education: Sepsis in newborn babies (The Basics)
Patient education: Ear infections in children (The Basics)
Patient education: Flu (The Basics)
Patient education: Cough, runny nose, and the common cold (The Basics)
Patient education: Caring for your newborn (The Basics)

Patient education: Fever in children (Beyond the Basics)

This topic retrieved from UpToDate on: Feb 02, 2024.
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