how to tell if they have a temp when you have no termomitor

[simone]

Michael - even for the 2 days Anneliese was continually vomiting, i was trying to give her bottles... maybe she would've kept it down if it wasn't so heavy. She wont drink water at all, i even tried her on diluted juice, but she only wanted milk, which she brought straight back up.

[Schmickers]

Simone: Sometimes, with a really bad case of gastro, the best thing is to rest the gut completely, as it is just so irritated from the infection it can't tolerate anything. But yes, this is pretty difficult, because some little ones remain hungry even through the nausea...*sigh*

KMH: It sounds as if your little one is indeed unwell. Definitely stick with the doctor, or take her to hospital if you become concerned overnight. A rash is extremely common with a viral illness, and is almost never anything to worry about. A rash that would be a cause for concern would be a rash that doesn't blanch - that is, a rash that doesn't go white when you press on it. This kind of rash, called a petechial rash by health professionals, is caused by multiple small burst blood vessels in the skin - it is actually a series of pin-***** or slightly larger-sized bruises. This is one of the symptoms of meningococcal disease, which is very serious and requires antibiotics straight away. A much more common type of rash in an unwell child is a fine red rash over the arms, trunk, or face, which blanches when you press it (try pressing a glass to the rash, because you can see through the glass to the skin underneath and actually see it whitening as you press).

[Tobily]

I always go by my lips! if his forehead feels hot when i put my lips to his head then its a temperature and it has always been right for me. An older mother told me this and ive found it to help, though ive always had a thermometer on hand too but its a good sign.

I do this as well and it's usually right.

[kmh]

thanks again micheal, the rash i was not worried about, but over night she was screaming like she was in pain, and she has had not amny wet nappies, we are off to see the doctor at 9:50am

[simone]

If she hasnt had any wet nappies, thats the bit to stress to the drs.

I took declan to the hossy with gastro with a temp of 40.5, and no wet nappies for over 12 hours at arrival, and they made him wait for 5 hours... no treatment, nothing. i ended up taking him home and syringing water into his mouth. Do whatever it takes to get her to take that fluid...

Good luck hun...

[kmh]

Charlotte has tonsilitls, and i am waiting for some test results in regarding her blader as something came back a bit high, so hopefully i will hear about that tonight or tomorrow morning. But my doctor does not seem to think it will be anything at they know why she had such a high temp yesterday.

She seems to be taking more feeds now which is great, i will be checking her nappy when she wakes up.

[simone]

AT least its figured out. Have they put Charlotte on a/b's or anything??

[Roryrory]

KMH, my boy is exhibiting identical symptoms - wonder if it is tonsilitis also? I think if he is still like this tomorrow I will take him to the doctors....

[Beckibee]

I'm not sure about interstates but 'slap cheek' (parvo virus) is going around as well at the moment up here. Alot of the "symptoms" are not dissimilar to that of a flu/cold (ie. temps, runny nose, cough, irritability etc) but of course it's the rash that arrives (after they've stopped being contagious typically - so many children get sent to daycare/childcare whilst their contagious because they're parents don't know they're going to pass it on) a few days later.... my niece & her cousin have just had it courtesy of a few kids at childcare.

The rash looks a bit like a heat rash at times, first thing in the morning it looked like she had 2nd degree burns on her chest & arms. Oh, and the rash can rotate for want of a better word. It might show on the thighs in the morning, but then have moved to the arms and chest in the afternoon and then is just on the face in the evening.

[kmh]

Yeah she is on a/b i will find out the rest of the test results either tonight or tomorrow morning.

[Jennifer13]

Hope Charlotte is getting better for you, Kelly.

Why is it not accurate to test the temp on your baby's forehead? Sorry if that's a stupid qn! My DD had a temp yesterday and was whingey and clingy all day but I only felt her forehead, dry and hot to touch. This morning she still had a very slight temp, but after breakfast and a couple of bf it was gone. She seems fine now. I didn't use a thermometer (I can never remember what is a high temp anyway and the batteries seem to be permanently flat...) but I'm guessing a Mum's judgement is okay?

Some good advice here, thanks everyone!

[Liz]

Maybe it's because it's exposed to the air so the surface temperature that you feel is inaccurate? No idea really! LOL.

All I know is Tallon's head feels hot ALL the time... yet when I take his temp its only 36.something. So it's very inaccurate for us! I don't really know what a 'high' temp is either. 38? 39?

[Schmickers]

Because the body adjusts it's temperature by radiating heat from the extremities - the arms, legs, and head. So they will not necessarily be an accurate indicator of the child's true temperature. In a very unwell child, their blood pressure will fall; to try and keep the body working, the blood flow is pooled in ther internal organs and the brain; so the outer layers of skin will feel quite cold, even though the child has a temperature.

And as someone pointed out, if it is a hot or cold day outside, the extremities will also be hot or cold accordingly.