What to do if a 2-year-old baby has a fever of 38.5 degrees

  A two-year-old baby loves to go out and play, almost every day. But when there is a significant temperature difference in the weather, one can still catch a cold. For children, even a slight physical discomfort can cause a fever. Fever is more common in children, and there are many reasons that can cause fever, such as respiratory tract infections, various acute infectious diseases, etc. So, what should I do if a 2-year-old baby has a fever of 38.5 degrees?

  

What to do if a 2-year-old baby has a fever of 38.5 degrees1

  1. Warm water bath: refers to wiping or soaking in warm water at 32-36 degrees Celsius. Wiping bath is the process of scrubbing or massaging the entire body of a child's skin with warm water; When bathing, the child should sink their entire body into the water. Warm water baths can stimulate children's skin, causing capillary dilation, increased blood flow, increased heat dissipation, and cleaning or dilating sweat gland openings to facilitate sweating and quickly and effectively cool down. It is recommended to take 5-10 minutes of warm water baths each time.

  2. Low temperature chamber method: Place the sick child in an environment with a room temperature of about 26 ℃ to slowly lower their body temperature. To allow its skin to come into contact with the outside air and facilitate cooling, it is necessary to wear less clothing. If conditions permit, air conditioning can be used to lower the room temperature. This method is suitable for infants under one month old, especially in summer. As long as the baby's clothes are open and placed in a cool place, their body temperature will gradually decrease. If the baby has a fever accompanied by chills and shivering, the low-temperature chamber method cannot be used.

  3. Ice compress: A small amount of ice compress can be applied appropriately, such as on the forehead, sides of the neck, armpits, groin, and other large blood vessel areas of the baby. But it is important to wrap a layer of cloth around the ice pack to prevent local frostbite of the baby's skin, and babies under 6 months old should not be frozen. There is still much controversy over the pros and cons of this method. It is generally believed that ice cream has more disadvantages than advantages, as it may cause the contraction of capillaries in the baby's skin, hinder heat dissipation, and increase body temperature, especially when accompanied by chills and shivering. Therefore, ice cream should not be used.

  4. Massage cooling: This method is simple and fast in cooling down. It should be emphasized that the above measures are generally adopted when the body temperature exceeds 38.5 degrees Celsius, and should be carried out at least until 38 degrees Celsius, otherwise it will be detrimental to the child. If the baby's body temperature does not decrease continuously, the mother should take medication under the guidance of a doctor for treatment.

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