Here is a list of 6 serious symptoms in children that no parent should ignore. It gave me chills last year while I experienced one of them!
Come winters and doctors businesses start flocking to the cloud! Why not, it’s flu time afterall. I mean, usually around this time of the year, kids tend to catch flu and viruses so easily. Maybe it’s because at this time, sitting indoors just cant happen. With Christmas and New Year’s excitement, children seem to forget everything. They just care about collecting goodies from the Santa and playing in the winter chill. So, yes, blame it on the weather and all the winter festivities. With the sudden dip in the mercury, fever like symptoms do the rounds in houses, nurseries, schools, offices and where not!
With the adults, it isn’t difficult to find out whether one has been under the weather or not, but with babies, infants and toddlers, holding a thermometer in their mouths is not possible and also because they are usually so charged up all the time, finding out whether they have fever or not becomes a task. However, if the Axillary temperature (recorded under the arm pit) of your little one shows anywhere above 99F then it’s a cause of concern. But, again, if it’s a viral fever, then you need not worry much. Viral fever in children usually goes within 3-5 days of medication.
In case you are wondering what is a viral fever? Well! Viral fever is an infection caused by virus. The most common viral fever is the seasonal flu which is extremely common in kids. The virus is usually contracted by being exposed to coughs/sneezes of an infected person. That’s why the children doctor usually asks a mother with flu to maintain some distance from the baby. But. that doesn’t mean that she cant breastfeed her child. She must and all the more under these circumstances. Click here to know why.
Well, the viral fever symptoms in children usually are:
- Cough/cold or both – You would get to know
- Sore/ dry throat with bouts of cough – You would get to know
- Runny or stuffy nose – You would get to know
- Headaches – You wouldn’t know about this
- Chills – You wouldn’t know about this unless it’s a high grade fever
- Fatigue – You would get to know about this. The child’s energy shows a gradual dip when he is down with viral
- Nausea/Vomiting – You would get to know. Baby starts throwing up food (at times even breastfeed)
- Diarrhea – You would get to know
- Tummy ache – If none of the above symptoms are showing yet but the baby has been crying and one gentle touch (gentle pressing of the tummy) can determine if the baby has pain in the stomach
If your child has viral fever, then the children’s doctor will prescribe a few medicines which can timely cure the infection. However, there are times, when the situation goes out of control. A kid cant really tell what he is going through. Even the wait-and-see approach fails under such circumstances. When does this situation arise? What are the 6 serious symptoms that you just can’t ignore. Take a look at them now:
Symptom #1: High Grade Fever: A fever that’s 100.4F or higher in a baby younger than 3 months; higher than 101F in a baby 3 to 6 months; or higher than 103F in a child 6 months to 2 years: Your child needs an immediate attention. Such high grade fever is usually associated with a bacterial infection (such as a UTI- urinary tract infection) which tends to spread rapidly in the blood stream.
Symptom #2: Fever doesn’t go in 3-5 days: A fever that doesn’t come down with the initial medication, or lasts more than five days (even after having taken a proper course of fever reducer like paracetamol, acetaminophen or ibuprofen) or comes back within four hours, needs immediate attention. This is a serious symptom of an infection that is probably way too strong for your little one’s immune system to fight off, and your doctor may want to do a thorough examination to determine the cause. A proper antibiotic course maybe needed for this.
Symptom #3: Fever with headache or a rash: A fever that has symptoms of a stiff neck, uncomfortable baby’s neck position, a headache or a rash that looks either bruise-like or tiny red dots could be a sign of meningitis. Call your pediatrician immediately.
Symptom #4: A new mole or a mark that is growing in size: Parents must keep a check on their child’s moles, or birthmarks. If required, take measurements for future comparison, especially those that he has had since birth, because those have a higher risk of becoming malignant. My husband tries and does a monthly skin check during Brat H’s bathtime. Ideally, you must report any kind of development or change in size/color to the pediatrician.
Symptom #5: Decreased Urination: Dry mouth and lips especially during winters accompanied by decrease in the frequency of urination, dry skin or skin that stays bunched when you pinch it, or excessive vomiting or diarrhea is a sign of dehydration. It needs to be treated on immediate basis. So consult your pediatrician as soon as possible.
Symptom #6: Swelling: If you have been noticing swollen tongue, lips, or eyes, especially when accompanied by vomiting or itchiness, then there is no ‘wait-and-see’ approach that will get you anywhere. These often signals a kidney related infection or a serious allergic reaction (anaphylaxis), symptoms of which may include swelling, breathing problems, and severe hives. It obviously needs immediate attention. Call your doctor on urgent basis.
For more symptoms, wait for our subsequent post from the ‘Serious symptoms in children’ series!
Information source: www.parents.com & www.webmd.com
Great information, thanks for sharing! G-uno
Thanks so much! Hope it helps.