Throat infection, high fever went to Pediatrician but....?!
Question: I have a 4 y.o daughter who has been with a high fever for two days, I took her to her dr wondering if she had an infection, well the dr said she does have a throat infection and prescribed amoxicillan.
My concern is that my daughter's fever doesn't seem to get that much better with the fever reducer I give her (I alternate between tylenol cold/childrens advil) because she has a stuffy nose and seems uncomfortable.
She is just so hot to the touch. She has been sick a lot like this when she was a baby, things got better for a while, now I am scared to death again.
Is it normal for the fever not to go down that much after fever reducer?
How long will it take for the amoxicillan to get rid of this infection?
Thanks
Answers: I have a 4 y.o daughter who has been with a high fever for two days, I took her to her dr wondering if she had an infection, well the dr said she does have a throat infection and prescribed amoxicillan.
My concern is that my daughter's fever doesn't seem to get that much better with the fever reducer I give her (I alternate between tylenol cold/childrens advil) because she has a stuffy nose and seems uncomfortable.
She is just so hot to the touch. She has been sick a lot like this when she was a baby, things got better for a while, now I am scared to death again.
Is it normal for the fever not to go down that much after fever reducer?
How long will it take for the amoxicillan to get rid of this infection?
Thanks
I know it is extremely difficult to see our children when they are sick, but fever is the body's way of fighting off infection. It would be worse for your daughter to be extremely sick, but have no fever. The fever shows that your daughters body is doing what it is supposed to do.
You did not say how high your daughter's fever was, or what it comes down too after taking the fever reducers, but a temperature of up to 102 is not harmful to the body, it is even good to let it remain elevated. Many Pediatricians will tell their parents to not give any fever reducers unless the fever is above 102. If the fever does go above 102, that is the time to give the fever reducers to bring the fever down to below 102. Don't expect the fever to go away completely because if your daughter is still sick, her body needs to have a little fever to fight off the infection.
Make sure you are not dressing your daughter in too heavy of clothing, because that will keep her fever elevated. Also, make sure the room is not too cold or drafty because if her skin feels drafts, her body will naturally shiver to get warmer regardless of her true body temperature.
Make sure she is getting enough fluids. If she gets dehydrated, it will be harder for her fever to come down. Dehydration just intensifies fevers. Try juices, popsicles, sodas, jello, gatorade, chicken broth ... any clear liquids will work well if she won't drink enough water. Keep an eye on her pee color, that will give you a good clue as to how well hydrated she is (the lighter in color the better - and remember, the water in the toilet will dilute it some so it will be darker than you are seeing in the toilet). Another good sign is if she needs to pee more often than normal.
After being on antibiotics for 2 full days, you should see signs of her getting better. If she still has a fever above 102 after 2 full days on antibiotics, I would take her back to the doctor - he may need to switch antibiotics at that time. It may take her a few days longer than that to have a temperature that is not elevated at all.
Sometimes it takes a while for antibiotics to fight off an infection. Unless a culture was done to identify the type of bacteria (and they usually aren't unless the infection is life threatening or not responding to treatment), you will never know the exact type of bacteria that is causing the infection. Amoxicillin is often the first drug given to children because it covers most types of infections. There are other antibiotics that may work faster than Amoxicillin on certain infections, but they have more side effects and are harder on the body. If the Amoxcillin will get rid of the infection (even if it takes a few days longer) it is better for the child. If, after a few days on Amoxcillin, your daughter isn't getting better, that is a sign to the doctor that a different antibiotic is necessary because the bacteria causing the infection isn't affected by Amoxcillin. As to how long will it take for the Amoxcillin to get rid of your daughter's infection ... that can't really be answered. It depends on whether or not the bacteria causing her infection is suseptable or not to treatment by Amoxcillin. If her bacteria does respond to Amoxcillin, is it the drug of choice or one that needs a longer treatment to be cleared up.
Also, it is not uncommon for a viral infection to take place along with a bacterial infection. In that case, your daughter would continue to run a low-grade fever regardless of the antibiotics because they don't work on viral infections.
I too have a 4yr old daughter and a 1yr old as well. Both are recovering from the flu & my 1yr from pneumonia. My 4yr old doesn't react very well to fever reducers. They normally don't seem to help her that much. Also, doctors are usually not so much as concerned with the fever, but with what is causing the fever. The fever is a reaction to the body fighting off the infection. The antibiotics should kick in any day now. If it isn't time to give another dose of the fever reducer (which usually takes about 30-35min to kick in) & she's still pretty hot, try giving her a luke warm bath. Or you can try putting a cool (not too cold) damp cloth on her forehead, under her armpits and on the back of the neck helps. Be careful not to get her chilled, otherwise her body will think it needs to get warm & could cause her fever to go higher. Also, make sure she is getting PLENTY of fluids. Any fever can rapidly dehydrate a child. Drinking pedialyte can help with this. It can be a scary time when your child is sick. I hope she gets better soon!