Toddler with frequent fevers...what could be going on??

[katengrace]

dd3 is 20 months old now and from the time she was about 9 months old she has been getting fevers every 4-6 weeks. They generally last 3-5 days and are anywhere from 100 degrees to 103 degrees. A couple of times they have been justified with an ear infection or a stomach virus, but most of the time they are symptomless. I generally try not to treat a low grade fever, but if I let hers go above 100 w/o giving her Tylenol or Motrin she gets nauseous and throws up. It just has me worried because I feel like she is getting too much medicine. I've taken her to the doctor and they basically tell me it's nothing more than a virus. I have 2 other children who never get sick with her, so I wonder how can it always be a "virus" that no one else catches. I know she's younger and can catch more but really? She's sick again now...nothing but a fever after just having one for 3 days 3 weeks ago. She's always cutting teeth when she gets a fever but it wouldn't be in the 101-102 degree range would it?? I'm just at a loss at this point ...don't even want to call the ped this morning because I know they are going to just brush me off. Any ideas what could be going on? Or anyone experience something similar? This has been going on for almost a year and I'm tired of seeing her feel so bad all of the time.

[Crew&West]

aww, poor thing. I'd take her to get a second or third or fourth opinion if you have too. Maybe try Childrens Hospital. They're great! If you think it's something underlying then I'd just keep seeing dr's until I got a decent answer besides "it's just a virus" kwim?! to you!!!

[ericsmom99]

I could have almost written your post! Mt DS is 22 months old and gets fevers every 4 weeks or so. His are a bit higher (102-103.5) and only every two or three months come with any other symptoms like vomiting. It has been like this pretty much since he was 4 or 5 months old. I have taken him to the doctor and expressed my concerns and everytime I am told its a virus. My DS has 3 older siblings that are in school and maybe they are bringing these virus' home to him but they never get sick themselves. I am frustrated and worried but no one else seems to be. I obviously have no advice for you, but I have never "met" anyone who has a child that is constantly sick like mine is.

[madebytrudi]

my older 3 had chronic fevers and the midwives and pediatricians all told me they are called 'mini-viruses' and it's part of what builds their immune system. They are super healthy now and rarely get sick, but we've changed a lot in regards to diet and medicine since they were little.

The more you interfere with the body's job, the more their bodies will have to compensate and seem 'sick' all the time. Remember that the symptoms we call 'being sick' is really the opposite. They are symptoms of the body doing it's job of cleaning out something that is bad.

Fevers are there to kill the virus. If the virus is not baked long enough to die, it will come back, mutate, whatever.

Just explaining how/why the body works. You need to do what you need to do for your kid.

[jlcohen]

DD is prone to fever viruses (and the seizures that they bring). We had a good 7 months of a fever every 4-6 weeks starting at 15 months. It always frustrated me because DS never got any of them. She only ever got fevers. Never anything else. No ear infections, UTI's, sneezing, coughing. Nothing. She was even hospitalized for 4 days with one of them because she kept having seizures and was dehydrated. All of her tests have come back within normal range so all that we conclude is that they are in fact just viruses. Right now we're going on our longest run without a fever (about 2 months) so I know another one is in our near future...

[mcpforever]

Do they check her white blood count when you are told it's a "fever virus?" I would think that an elevated count would back it up and a normal one would point in another direction.

My kids used to get fevers with teething every once in a while and they were in the same range you are describing.

Also, your older kids have more mature immune systems and could very well be getting the same things and just able to fight them off quicker without the fever.

[katengrace]

Originally Posted by mcpforever Do they check her white blood count when you are told it's a "fever virus?" I would think that an elevated count would back it up and a normal one would point in another direction. My kids used to get fevers with teething every once in a while and they were in the same range you are describing. Also, your older kids have more mature immune systems and could very well be getting the same things and just able to fight them off quicker without the fever.

The ped used to check her white blood count when she was much younger. The couple of times she did it was elevated so it backed up the virus diagnosis. They haven't checked in quite some time. The routine is check her ears and throat, and suggest that we cath her for a urine sample to check for a UTI. I did this once and will NEVER again.

[katengrace]

Originally Posted by jlcohen DD is prone to fever viruses (and the seizures that they bring). We had a good 7 months of a fever every 4-6 weeks starting at 15 months. It always frustrated me because DS never got any of them. She only ever got fevers. Never anything else. No ear infections, UTI's, sneezing, coughing. Nothing. She was even hospitalized for 4 days with one of them because she kept having seizures and was dehydrated. All of her tests have come back within normal range so all that we conclude is that they are in fact just viruses. Right now we're going on our longest run without a fever (about 2 months) so I know another one is in our near future...

This is what I worry about if I don't give her something to bring the fever down. She vomits and refuses to drink or eat anything for days. I don't want her to get dehydrated. What kinds of tests did they run on your dd?

[jlcohen]

Originally Posted by katengrace This is what I worry about if I don't give her something to bring the fever down. She vomits and refuses to drink or eat anything for days. I don't want her to get dehydrated. What kinds of tests did they run on your dd?

She's had blood tests, urine samples, chest x-rays, MRI's, CAT scans, lumbar punctures. During one of her hospital stays, she was followed by infectious disease. Honestly, if it wasn't for the fact that she has seizures they would probably not have done most of these tests.

[emilade]

I'd probably be looking for a doc to give a second opinion. It could be something minor, something less minor, or nothing at all, but it never hurts to double check.