OT: Should I be worried about high fever with no other symptoms in my 3 y/o?

[brergnat]

So, my son came home from preschool today crying (he rides the bus). I thought he was crying because his regular driver was not there and he does not like surprise changes! He has a major speech delay, so I'm left wondering a lot...

Anyway, he didn't want to eat lunch (he gets home at noon). He actually cried for about 10 min, laying on the living room floor. Eventually, he fell asleep, but didn't stay that way for long. I took his temp then and it was 100.5. I gave him a dose of Tylenol (at 12:15pm) and he just layed on the couch until we had to pick up his older brother from school, at 2pm. He seemed fine then...was running around the yard outside the school. Laughing and playing around as usual.

Back home, he fell asleep in his bed at 3:30pm. I let him sleep until 5:00, and when I woke him up, he was BURNING UP! I took his temp and it was 102.6! I gave him a dose of Ibuprofen and tried to get him to eat something (toast, a popsicle, some juice). He only ate half a fruit pop. Drank a bit of water. He's just mainly hanging out on the couch and sort of watching MMC on tv.

The thing that is puzzling me is that he has NO obvious symptoms. And, since he can't really answer the question "where do you hurt/feel sick", I don't know what he's feeling! No runny nose. No cough. No sneezing. No stomach issues (no vomiting, no diarrhea). I am clueless.

He was sick with a minor cold type illness a couple weeks ago, but got better very quickly. It was literally 48hrs worth of minor fever, cough, and runny nose. This was 2 weekends ago.

Should I be worried about this? This has never happened. Always when either of my boys has a fever, there is an obvious other symptom or few that I can sort of figure out what's wrong with them.

Anyone have experience with a sudden high fever with no obvious cause? What should I do? DH is away until tomorrow afternoon, so unless DS really goes downhill, I need to avoid the urgent care on my own with two special needs kids (older DS5 has autism...).

Any advice appreciated!

 

[Mouse House Mama]

It's not really a super high fever. I personally would continue with Motrin. He probably has some sort of viral infection. You should also know that you can have strep without a sore throat and some kids do not experience pain with ear infections. I would probably take a trip to the doctor to rule it out. Hope he feels better soon.

 

[DominicaAnne]

My cousin's 18 month old just had something similar where her fever was going up and down and no obvious other symptoms except that she was whiney and sleepy. It turned out that she had a bladder infection and as soon as she started on antibiotics she felt better the next morning. I'm not sure how common bladder infections are in boys, but possibly some other kind of infection?

Sorry I don't have personal experience with something like this. My daughter is 11.5 months and she has never had a fever. Good luck and I hope your little guy feels better soon.

 

[sherabby]

If he had a cold a few weeks ago it might have settled in his ear? My son has really bad allergies...fluid builds up...gets infected and he gets tons of ear infections. Sometimes his only sign is a fever. He never complains that his ear hurts. The flu is going around our area and so far knock on wood....we've avoided it. Hope he feels better soon!

 

[brergnat]

Never mind. He just vomited all over the couch and floor. It was nice and red too, because of the strawberry fruit pop he just ate.

Mystery solved!

Now my long night begins. *sigh*

 

[DVCJones]

I would consider taking him to the pediatrician in the morning. He may have strep. My DD had similar symptoms...even the vomiting and it was strep. My niece had the same symptoms too and it was scarlet fever. It could be nothing, but you never know....

I hope he is feeling better soon.

 

[brergnat]

Thanks everyone. I will likely take him to urgent care tomorrow afternoon after DH gets home, if he is still not doing well. We don't have a weekend pediatrician here...just urgent care, and the waits are LONG on weekends! Plus, he is DEATHLY afraid of doctors (has an irrational fear). He gets violent when I even mention "doctor"...I doubt they'd even be ABLE to look down his throat. So, unless he gets worse, we'll stick it out at home.

The thing is, my son is a MAJOR "drama queen". He cries over EVERY boo-boo and whenever he is in ANY pain. He was just giggling and being mischievous when I was putting them to bed. If he was REALLY sick, he'd be crying and wanting to cuddle...

Crossing my fingers that it's just a 24hr stomach bug...

 

[brittanyherndon]

It's not really a super high fever. I personally would continue with Motrin. He probably has some sort of viral infection. You should also know that you can have strep without a sore throat and some kids do not experience pain with ear infections. I would probably take a trip to the doctor to rule it out. Hope he feels better soon.

that concerns me cuse how do you know when to go to the Dr caus I don't run fevers even when I am extermly ill

My cousin's 18 month old just had something similar where her fever was going up and down and no obvious other symptoms except that she was whiney and sleepy. It turned out that she had a bladder infection and as soon as she started on antibiotics she felt better the next morning. I'm not sure how common bladder infections are in boys, but possibly some other kind of infection?
personal experience with something like this. My daughter is 11.5 months and she has never had a fever. Good luck and I hope your little guy feels better soon.

It suprises me that little kids can get blader infections and it is more comen in girls then boys
Sorry I don't have

I would consider taking him to the pediatrician in the morning. He may have strep. My DD had similar symptoms...even the vomiting and it was strep. My niece had the same symptoms too and it was scarlet fever. It could be nothing, but you never know....

I hope he is feeling better soon.

what is scarlet fever

 

[mjkacmom]

First of all, that is a low/moderate fever - 104-106 is considered high in preschoolers. I've dealt with probably over 100 illnesses in my children, and it sounds like a virus. Watch for crankiness, because strep and an ear infection could be possible (although about 80% of ear infections are viral, and clear up on their own). I usually don't treat fevers that low with tylenol (since fevers are the body's defense against illness - I usually wait until 103), but if he's cranky, I'd give it.

 

[mjkacmom]

Since he threw up, stick with tylenol and stop the motrin.

 

[DVCJones]

that concerns me cuse how do you know when to go to the Dr caus I don't run fevers even when I am extermly ill

It suprises me that little kids can get blader infections and it is more comen in girls then boys
Sorry I don't have



what is scarlet fever

It is Strep with a REALLY high fever (103 or higher). The fever causes a bright red rash on the body. If not treated it could turn into Rheumatic Fever. This is rare, as most people freak out with the rash and seek treatment ASAP! It is nothing that a good antibiotic can't fix.

 

[brergnat]

Since he threw up, stick with tylenol and stop the motrin.

Yep, I did. As soon as I knew it was stomach related, I have been giving Tylenol. Actually, I just gave him a dose this a.m. (he had no meds all night, but he was still very flushed and hot all night). I decided to let the fever just run its course as long as he was sleeping comfortably. But when he woke up, he was super cranky and asked for medicine, so I gave him a dose of Tylenol since his temp was still over 101.

When I checked on him around 2:30am, he had thrown up again in his bed, and he had actually gotten up and changed his pj's. I didn't hear a thing! He is a "silent vomiter"...he doesn't cough or gag like my older son. He just opens his mouth and it sort of just spills out. So, he was lying there sleeping with just pj pants on, and I left him that way, because he was really warm, so I didn't want to overdress him. He had blankets and stuff, so I knew he was okay. His poor little stuffed puppy got the brunt of the "sick" though. Luckily, he's machine washable!

Anyway, he seems to be better this morning. He's currently playing with his cars on the floor.

 

[sherabby]

My son woke up throwing up last night too. No fever but he is on his 4th time getting sick. He's just miserable today.

 

[jms531]

Just a side note but Tylenol can actually cause GI problems...his throwing up most likely is just the flu but if it persists along with the fever I would definitely take him in to the Dr. Has he ever had Tylenol before? Some people can't handle how it irritates the stomach.

 

[brergnat]

Just a side note but Tylenol can actually cause GI problems...his throwing up most likely is just the flu but if it persists along with the fever I would definitely take him in to the Dr. Has he ever had Tylenol before? Some people can't handle how it irritates the stomach.

No worries. He has DEFINITELY had tylenol before! Many times. He's almost 4 years old. Motrin too. No stomach issues, and actually, this is only the second time in his entire life that he's had a "vomit bug". His older bro is more prone to these types of G.I. viruses.

 

[MSSANDRA]

Sometimes the fever themselves can cause children to throw up. DS always thew up with a fever so I could NEVER be sure. It sounds like you are safe to wait till DH gets home to see how he is. I may be concerned about a secondary infection from his cold however.

 

[brergnat]

So I ended up taking my son to the doctor on Monday. He was diagnosed with a MASSIVE ear infection (his first ever), and H1N1 (doc was 99% sure, based on his presentation and symptoms thus far...she believes the ear infection was a secondary infection as a result of H1N1 virus). At the doctor on Monday, his fever was STILL high; 104.4 to be exact, after a dose of Ibuprofen only 5 hours earlier.

Since he had already been sick for 72 hours she did not bother testing him for H1N1, as it did not make a difference at that point WHICH flu he had (too late for Tamiflu, no one in our family is "high risk", etc.) However, she said that they are commonly seeing kids who DO test positive for H1N1 present with exactly the same onset of symptoms, duration of fever, vomiting, etc. as DS. Specifically, that the fever is high (over 102) and doesn't go away with meds, only comes down temporarily, and lasts for more than 3 days. Vomiting at onset is common in preschool age kids, she said. Over the weekend, he was extremely fussy, lethargic, and unable to sleep well at night. He wasn't eating except some applesauce and toast here and there. I got him to eat some chicken once in 3 days.

Our main issue was that DS has a major speech delay, so he couldn't communicate WHERE he hurt, felt bad, etc. Just lots of whining, crying, and laying down all the time. And, he had NO upper respiratory symptoms. He started sneezing/runny nose 5 days later, only yesterday.

Anyway, just wanted to share. This is apparently a typical presention of H1N1 in kids that age.

The doctor said that it's actually a good thing that the infection spread to his ear, rather than his lungs, as an ear infection is easily treatable and responds well to antibiotics rather quickly. Much better than a bacterial pneumonia or bronchitis. We are just to monitor his respiratory function over the next several days, and if he develops a bad cough, or his fever comes back, we are to go to the ER.

Today he is finally fever free (6 days later) and starting to feel better. Slept a full night last night in his own bed, woke up happy, and ate a huge breakfast.

But now, older DS is sick. At least we know what it is now...and I guess don't have to bother with the vacccine, which our pedi's office is not going to have for another week!

 

[sherabby]

So glad to hear that he is feeling better. My son gets tons of ear infections that follow after a cold/virus. I'm glad that the fever is gone!