Infant Baby Fever

It's the season for colds, flu, and every thing in between. I was on a disinfection mission last week as my husband sneezed his sickness into the air. I warned him about not taking the flu shot, but as a man he boasted that he has never had the flu. Well something had him in bed from Wednesday to Sunday and it definitely wasn't the common cold. As for me I'm doing great. However my little girl just developed a slight fever of 99.3 (Fahrenheit) today. I was a little panicked because they informed me that if she developed a fever before 2 months she would automatically be placed in the hospital for 48 hours of observation. I did a little internet search while waiting for the pediatrician to come back from her lunch break and I'm feeling a little less anxiety. Her pediatrician is taking a lunch break at the moment so I have to wait for a while. I checked out a few internet resources and I'm feeling better now.

The following information is from http://www.babycenter.com/0_fever_84.bc

"A temperature reading isn't the only indication of whether a fever is serious. Your baby's age is a factor (fever is more serious in babies under 3 months), as is his behavior (a high fever that doesn't stop him from playing and feeding normally may not be cause for alarm).
Keep in mind that everyone's temperature rises in the late afternoon and early evening and falls between midnight and early morning. The natural cycle of our internal thermostat explains why doctors get most of their phone calls about fever in the late afternoon and early evening.
Ask your baby's doctor when she'd like you to call if your baby has a fever. Common guidelines are:

• If your baby is less than 3 months old and has a temperature of 100.4 degrees F (38 degrees C) or higher, call the doctor immediately. A baby this young needs to be checked for serious infection or disease.

•For a baby between 3 and 6 months old, call if his temperature reaches 101 degrees F (38.3 degrees C) or higher.

• If your baby is 6 months or older, call if his fever reaches 103 degrees F (39.4 degrees C) or higher."

Before I finished this article my daughter's fever was gone. LOL.

RSV Respiratory Syncytial Virus

It's that time of year when our little ones are susceptible to all types of germs that cause cause illness. One of the worst conditions for newborns is Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV). It's highly contagious and can live of the surface of common household items. Below is a small excerpt about this common but potentially fatal disease.

	Respiratory Syncytial Virus "Clinical features: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia among infants and children under 1 year of age. Illness begins most frequently with fever, runny nose, cough, and sometimes wheezing. During their first RSV infection, between 25% and 40% of infants and young children have signs or symptoms of bronchiolitis or pneumonia, and 0.5% to 2% require hospitalization. Most children recover from illness in 8 to 15 days. The majority of children hospitalized for RSV infection are under 6 months of age. RSV also causes repeated infections throughout life, usually associated with moderate-to-severe cold-like symptoms; however, severe lower respiratory tract disease may occur at any age, especially among the elderly or among those with compromised cardiac, pulmonary, or immune systems... Prevention: Development of an RSV vaccine is a high research priority, but none is yet available. Current prevention options include good infection-control practices, RSV-IGIV, and an anti-RSV humanized murine monoclonal antibody. RSV-IGIV or the anti-RSV humanized murine monoclonal antibody can be given during the RSV outbreak season to prevent serious complications of infection in some infants and children at high risk for serious RSV disease (e.g., those with chronic lung disease and prematurely born infants with or without chronic lung disease). Frequent handwashing and not sharing items such as cups, glasses, and utensils with persons who have RSV illness should decrease the spread of virus to others. Excluding children with colds or other respiratory illnesses (without fever) who are well enough to attend child care or school settings will probably not decrease the transmission of RSV, since it is often spread in the early stages of illness. In a hospital setting, RSV transmission can and should be prevented by strict attention to contact precautions, such as handwashing and wearing gowns and gloves..." Please visit http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/revb/respiratory/rsvfeat.htm to read the entire article and obtain more information.

Conjunctivitis

Yesterday during our Christmas celebration, my brand new daughter, Patty, developed a severe case of conjunctivitis. One of my sisters, who has five children, told me to gently wipe her eye with a warm cloth to keep it clean until I could call the pediatrician. Being insecure, I consulted some websites which confirmed what she said and also mentioned that the infection usually clears up on its own within a week. However I also noted that using cotton balls and throwing them after each use was more sanitary. Some of the websites explained that one form of conjunctivitis was caused by the baby scratching his/her eye and transferring bacteria. Well I had filed her nails, but she was still scratching at her eyes a lot, so my husband covered her hands with mittens. I was extremely worried all night and considered just going to the emergency room, but we kept gently wiping with warm water to keep the debris out of her eye. Lo and behold by 9:00 this morning, her right eye was clean and clear. It's now 4:00 in the after noon and there is not a slimy eye booger in site. WHEW!