When you are too cold, your blood vessels narrow. This reduces blood flow to your skin to save body heat. You may start to shiver. When the muscles tremble this way, it helps to make more heat.
Fever In most adults, an oral or axillary temperature above A fever may occur as a reaction to: Infection. This is the most common cause of a fever. Infections may affect the whole body or one body part. These include antibiotics , opioids , antihistamines , and many others. This is called a "drug fever. Other medicines keep the body from resetting its temperature when other things cause the temperature to rise. Severe trauma or injury. This may include heart attack, stroke, heatstroke , or burns.
Other medical conditions. These include arthritis, hyperthyroidism, and even some cancers, such as leukemia and lung cancer. Low body temperature hypothermia If a low body temperature is your only symptom, it is not something to worry about. High body temperature heatstroke Heatstroke occurs when the body fails to control its own temperature and body temperature keeps rising. There are two types of heatstroke.
Classic heatstroke can happen even when a person isn't doing much, as long as it's hot and the body isn't able cool itself well enough by sweating.
The person may even stop sweating. Classic heatstroke may develop over several days. Babies, older adults, and people who have chronic health problems have the greatest risk of this type of heatstroke. Exertional heatstroke may happen when a person is working or exercising in a hot place. The person may sweat a lot, but the body still makes more heat than it can lose. This causes temperature to rise to high levels. Check for a very low body temperature in people who have been exposed to cold.
Check for a very high body temperature in people who have been exposed to heat. Find out how well a fever-reducing medicine is working. Help a woman plan for pregnancy by finding out if she is ovulating. How To Prepare Take your temperature a few times when you are well. Before you take your temperature: Wait at least 20 to 30 minutes after you smoke, you eat, or you drink a hot or cold liquid.
Wait at least an hour after hard exercise or a hot bath. There are different types of thermometers. Electronic thermometers are plastic and shaped like a pencil.
They have a display window at one end and the temperature probe at the other end. These thermometers can be used in the mouth, rectum, or armpit. They are easy to use and easy to read. If you buy this type of thermometer, check the package for information about its accuracy. Ear thermometers are plastic and come in different shapes.
The small cone-shaped end of the thermometer is placed in the ear. Body temperature is shown on a digital display. The results appear in seconds. Some models also show what the oral and rectal readings would be. Temporal artery thermometers have a small "cup" that is moved across the skin over the artery in the forehead. Products for taking temporal artery temperature sweeping thermometer across your child's forehead at home have not yet been shown to be accurate or reliable enough for home use.
How It Is Done Before you take a temperature, read the instructions for how to use your type of thermometer. How to take an oral temperature Oral by mouth is the most common method of taking a temperature.
Place the thermometer under the tongue, just to one side of the centre. Ask the person to close his or her lips tightly around it. Leave the thermometer in place for the required amount of time. Time yourself with a clock or watch. Some digital thermometers give a series of short beeps when the reading is done.
Remove the thermometer and read it. Clean a digital thermometer with cool, soapy water and rinse it off before you put it away. How to take a rectal temperature This is the most accurate way to measure body temperature. Apply a lubricant jelly or petroleum jelly, such as Vaseline, on the bulb of the thermometer. This will make it easy to insert. With a baby or small child, place them safely on their stomach on your lap or a comfortable surface.
If a baby is unable to safely lie on their stomach, place them on their back. Choose a quiet place so that the child won't be distracted or move around too much.
Spread the child's buttocks with one hand. With the other hand, gently insert the bulb end of the thermometer into the anus. Push it in about 1. Don't force it into the rectum. Susan Yeargin , PhD, associate professor of exercise science at University of South Carolina, has tested all types of temperature devices in diagnosing hyper- and hypothermia.
They were inaccurate compared to the rectal temperature. The reduction may be due to a population-wide decline in inflammation. Generally, inflammation increases our metabolism and raises temperature. Because of improvements in public health, this could be why inflammation has decreased. The ambient temperatures we live in, thanks to heating and air conditioning, could be factors in lower metabolic rates. A fever is the body's way of battling an illness.
Here's how to tell if you have a fever, plus what you should do and when you should seek help. Although the average body temperature is Need to get rid of a fever fast? Read about side effects, warnings, and other factors to help you decide which fever reducer is best for you or your…. Familial Mediterranean fever is an inherited condition that causes episodes of high fever and other symptoms like stomach, chest, and joint pain….
If you're feeling feverish, but not running a temperature, several factors could be at play. Mental confusion and hallucinations sometimes happen when people have a fever, which can be an uncomfortable experience for them and their caregivers….
Fever symptoms may include more than just an increase in body temperature. In adults and children, a temperature of Fever and sweat tend to go together anyway. Among babies , children, and adults, the following thermometer readings are generally a sign of a fever:. Research from suggests that fever thresholds for older adults might be lower, since older individuals have more difficulty conserving heat.
Most of the time, rest is the best medicine. With babies and younger children , it can be hard to know when to call a doctor. Call your pediatrician if:. Seek medical care if your baby or child has a fever and:. Hypothermia is a serious condition that occurs when you lose too much body heat.
Most people associate hypothermia with being outside in cold weather for long periods of time. But hypothermia can occur indoors, too. Babies and older adults are more susceptible. Hypothermia can also be a concern in a poorly heated house in winter or an air-conditioned room in summer. Most of the time, a fever goes away with a few days of rest. However, when your fever climbs too high, lasts too long, or is accompanied by severe symptoms, seek treatment.
Your doctor will ask questions about your symptoms. They might perform or order tests to determine the cause of the fever. Treating the cause of the fever can help your body temperature return to normal. On the other hand, a low body temperature can also be cause for concern.
Hypothermia can be life threatening if left untreated. Seek medical assistance as soon as you notice signs of hypothermia. To diagnose hypothermia, your doctor will use a standard clinical thermometer and check for physical signs. They may use a low-reading rectal thermometer if needed.
0コメント