Why do I have a frequent fever?

Fever is a common disease. Many situations can cause fever, such as colds, inflammation, etc. Under normal circumstances, the human body's body temperature is relatively stable. It will not always have a fever or a low fever. High fever, in particular, is very harmful to the human body. It can obviously increase the body's consumption and affect the heart, brain and other organs. Therefore, if you have a fever frequently, you need to pay attention and be sure to find the cause and treat it symptomatically.

If patients have frequent fevers, they need to observe more changes in their bodies and see whether they have other symptoms while having a fever, such as nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, rapid heartbeat, difficulty breathing, etc. When seeking medical treatment, they should clearly inform the doctor of their symptoms. This will help to make a correct diagnosis of the disease, especially for children who cannot express their physical discomfort themselves and can only rely on careful observation by their parents. Here we will introduce what causes frequent fevers.

(I) Causes of high fever

1. Infectious diseases are caused by bacteria, viruses, and protozoa, which are the most common causes. Such as colds, pneumonia, bronchitis, malaria, etc.

2. Non-infectious diseases: heat stroke, tumors, immune diseases such as lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, etc.

(II) Diagnosis of high fever

(1) High fever accompanied by chills and shivering is usually caused by bacterial or protozoan infection, such as sepsis, malaria, lobar pneumonia, acute pyelonephritis, acute cholecystitis, etc.

(2) High fever lasts for 4-6 days, including chickenpox, scarlet fever, measles, typhoid, etc.

(3) High fever accompanied by severe headache and vomiting is often seen in meningitis and encephalitis.

(4) High fever accompanied by chest pain, cough, and shortness of breath is seen in respiratory system diseases such as pneumonia, tracheitis, and pleurisy.

(5) High fever accompanied by abdominal pain. Pain in the right upper abdomen may be caused by hepatitis, liver abscess, or cholecystitis; pain in the entire abdomen may be caused by peritonitis.

(6) High fever lasting more than three weeks is often seen in malignant tumors, tuberculosis, and bacterial endocarditis.

Patients with high fever must go to the hospital for examination, clear diagnosis, and treatment targeted at the cause of the disease before the high fever can improve. Simply using antipyretic drugs can only work temporarily, and the high fever will still not subside after the effect of the medicine wears off.

(III) Symptoms of high fever

When the fever is high, the face becomes flushed, the skin becomes hot, the mouth becomes thirsty and the throat becomes dry, the spirit becomes dull, the appetite becomes poor, and the breathing and pulse rate increase (starting from 37°C, the pulse rate increases by 10 times for every 1°C increase). The patient begins to feel sleepy, and in severe cases, coma and convulsions may occur.

(IV) Rescue measures

(1) At the beginning of a high fever, the patient may experience chills due to the strong contraction of blood vessels in the skin. At this time, you should not rush to take antipyretic measures, but instead pay attention to keeping warm. If the body temperature rises rapidly after a chill, take the following fever-reducing measures in time.

(2) Rest in bed and drink plenty of water, about 2000 ml per day. Drink more water when the temperature is high. It is best not to drink drinks that contain a lot of sugar.

(3) Physical cooling methods: Ice packs: can reduce brain congestion and edema and have a protective effect on the central nervous system. The specific method is to take ice cubes out of the refrigerator, put them into cold water to rinse off the edges and corners, and then put them into a hot water bag, fill 1/2 bag with water and ice, expel the air, close the lid tightly, check for water leakage, place it on the patient's forehead, or on the back of the head, neck, bilateral armpits, etc., and change the position every 20 minutes to avoid frostbite. Alcohol bath: It can dilate local blood vessels and use the evaporation of alcohol to take away heat, thereby achieving the purpose of cooling. The alcohol concentration used for physical cooling is about 30%. Use 70% to 95% alcohol and water in a ratio of 1:1 to 1:2. You can also use white wine to prepare it. The areas for sponge bathing are the neck, back of the head, armpits, elbows, thighs, ankles, etc., but do not wipe the chest, abdomen, palms, soles of feet, etc., to avoid adverse consequences. The action of alcohol rubbing bath should be gentle, and only apply a thin layer until the skin turns slightly red. If the patient has chills, pale face, and blue lips, stop the sponge bath immediately, cover with a quilt to keep warm, and drink some sugar water.

(4) Use medication to reduce body temperature if it is too high. Avoid overdose and repeated use of medication in a short period of time. Antipyretics can cause excessive sweating and enhance heat dissipation, which can easily lead to collapse. Commonly used antipyretics include compound aspirin (APC), paracetamol, antonidine, and bupleurum injection. Patients with gastrointestinal diseases can also choose indomethacin suppositories, inserting 1/2 of a suppository into the anus each time, which is also very effective in reducing fever. Patients with long-term high fever can also be given Zixuedan, Angong Niuhuang Pills orally and Qingkailing injection by intravenous drip, etc.

(5) Strengthen care and ensure nutrition. Patients with high fever often have loss of appetite, sweat a lot, and consume a lot of energy. Efforts should be made to get the patients to eat more easily digestible light liquid diet rich in high vitamins and other nutrients, including fresh vegetable juice, fruit juice, etc., to increase the body's resistance. In addition, patients with high fever have reduced saliva secretion and lack of vitamins, so they often have dry mouth and tongue, glossitis and oral ulcers. Therefore, they need to strengthen oral care, gargle with light salt water 2 to 3 times a day, and take vitamin C and vitamin $B_2$ and other drugs. Oral ulcers can be treated with external application of Bingpengsan and cleft lips can be treated with Vaseline ointment, both of which are very effective.

(6) To prevent convulsions, ensure rest and reduce fever as quickly as possible. Especially for children with high fever, sedatives such as diazepam, phenobarbital, and hibernation spirit can be used appropriately. However, it should be used with caution or prohibited for the elderly and unconscious patients to avoid aggravating their condition.

(7) Measure body temperature regularly and observe changes in the condition. Measure body temperature half an hour, one hour, and two hours after taking antipyretics or physical cooling, and once every 4 to 8 hours at other times. Record the temperature and observe changes in body temperature. If the body temperature continues to not drop, the patient should be sent to the hospital for diagnosis and treatment in time and other further measures should be taken. The correct way to measure body temperature: It is generally more convenient to measure armpit temperature at home. The measured value plus 0.5℃ is the oral temperature (actual body temperature). Before measuring the armpit temperature, the armpit sweat should be wiped dry and the measurement time should be 5 to 10 minutes. If you don't have a thermometer at hand, you can determine whether the patient has a fever by measuring his breathing and pulse. A normal adult breathes 12 to 16 times per minute at rest, and has a pulse rate of 70 to 80 beats per minute. For every 1°C increase in body temperature, the breathing rate increases by 3 to 4 times per minute and the pulse rate increases by about 10 times. Therefore, for a patient with a high fever with a body temperature above 39°C, the breathing rate can speed up to 24 times per minute and the pulse rate can reach about 100 times per minute. This can be used to preliminarily judge the patient's fever level.

(8) Treatment of the cause. High fever is just a symptom of certain diseases. Simply reducing fever is sometimes not effective, and the body temperature rises again once the effect of the medicine wears off. Therefore, when you have a high fever, you should pay attention to finding the cause and treat it accordingly. Fever caused by infectious diseases will naturally subside as the condition improves after treatment with sufficient and effective antibiotics.

Patients who often have fever need to pay more attention to their diet. They should eat more nutritious foods, avoid spicy foods, tobacco and alcohol, and increase physical exercise appropriately. This can enhance the body's resistance and immunity, and will also help with the recovery and recurrence of the disease.